Duality
by nora1407
Summary: So here we were, at a standstill. I had no idea what to say or how to make him leave & he showed no sign of what he was thinking. "Don't worry Nora, I'm not going to hurt you…much," He smirked. "You might even enjoy it." ...lemon mid story
1. Chapter 1

Hey Guys! So this is my first attempt at fan fiction. This story takes place a few months after the events of Hush Hush. I will try to update as fast as I possibly can. Constructive criticisms and suggestions are always welcome. Please Review!

**PROLOGUE**

"Ahhhhh!" I screamed. Cold shivers flooded through my body. Patch's face came into view as he bobbed back to the surface.

"It's not that cold Nora. It's got a heater for Christ's sake," he said through a smile.

"Maybe it's heated when the people are home. When they're on vacation, not so much," I whispered through chattering teeth. We were swimming in the Morson family's pool, unbeknownst to them. They had taken off on their R.V trip around the country about a week ago and weren't due back for a month. I let out a sigh and shook my head with my eyes closed, "I can't believe you talked me into this."

Patch tried to look offended, "So now _I_ talked you into this? _You_ were the one who suggested we go swimming."

That was true. I had suggested swimming this afternoon when Patch had come over. "I meant at the public pool, preferably during opening hours."

"Well sorry angel, but I don't do public pools. Isn't this better though? No little annoying kids. No fifty year olds in speedos. We have the whole place to ourselves." He said, moving ever so gracefully though the midnight water as he spoke. "Or would you prefer to have the fifty year olds in speedos?" he joked.

"Well, they are my type," I answered through a laugh.

"But seriously, isn't it better having the whole place to ourselves?" he smiled.

I shot him a reproachful look, "yeah, until the next teen couple shows up with the same idea as we had-"

"And exactly what idea is that?" Patch asked, moving closer.

I floated over to him, closing the distance between us with a few strokes. "To be alone…_no parents_," I leant in and brushed over his lips with mine, "_no friends_," I brushed over his lips again, "_no housekeepers_." He laughed as I gave up the tease and pressed my mouth to his. The taste of his lips was sweet yet salty, as if the chlorine has seeped into them.

"_Mmmm_, I like that idea," Patch said through kisses. Almost six months had past since the (rather long) night in which Patch had told me he was happy to give up his chance at a human body. Happy to just be with me, as my guardian angel. In the last six months there'd been a lot less damsel moments and the only thing Patch had really saved me from was boredom. We were content, we were happy. Everything was good.

CHAPTER 1

I hadn't seen Patch in a few days. Okay, so it had only been four days. But he hadn't called, left a voicemail…nothing. On the inside I was going crazy but I refused to let it show on the outside. I was not going to be one of 'those' girls. The girls who panicked if their boyfriend didn't call, then it turns out there was actually a perfectly reasonable excuse for the not calling. No, I would not allow myself to become that girl. Neither would Vee for that matter.

I was driving home from her place after spending the day with her. We'd shopped, pigged out on fast food, mocked Marcie Millar mercilessly and even had time to squeeze in an utterly awkward conversation about how far Patch and I had gone. Of course the 'awkward' label only applied to me because Vee certainly didn't have any qualms about asking. And believed me, she asked and asked and asked. I managed to get her off my back by telling her about eighty times that we hadn't done _it_ and that when we did she would be the first to know.

The last part was true in a way; of course she would be the first to know. I mean, I wasn't going to tell anyone else and I didn't envision Patch bragging to the other guardian angels. But I didn't know if I would tell her straight away. It was just that if Patch and I did finally 'do it', I didn't want to jinx the relationship by running to Vee with all the sordid details. Maybe that logic didn't make sense to others but in my head it sounded right.

I turned onto my street and the Neon groaned as I pushed it forward down the long dark stretch of road. It was storming outside and I could practically feel the car frame vibrating as thunder roared in the night. Lightning lit up the night sky momentarily and I saw the house coming closer. I forced the car just that bit further until the familiar sound of the driveway gravel crunching beneath the wheels reached my ears.

I organised myself, picking up all the shopping bags I physically could with one hand and got the house keys ready in the other. I wrenched open the car door and slammed it back, ready to dash for the door. But the door didn't close. I slammed it again, raindrops now dripping from my nose. But it just wouldn't close. I opened it to again to see if the seatbelt was in the doorframe but there was absolutely nothing blocking the door. Frustrated, I slammed the door with as much power as is possible for a drenched teenage girl holding seven shopping bags. It closed perfectly showing no sign that there'd ever been anything stopping it. Not wanting to stand in the rain and question it, I sprinted for the porch and shoved the keys in the door, silently praying that the lock wasn't jammed. It wasn't, and I swung the door open as soon as the key clicked.

_Finally,_ was all I could think as I shut the door behind me and let the bags fall from my cold hands. The house was empty as it was Dorothea's day off and my mum was away on business. I flipped the light switch but nothing happened. I flipped it again and nothing happened. _Dang,_ power was out. Looking down to the pool of water I was creating, I slipped off my shoes with a squelch and headed for my room. There was a flashlight at the back of my closet from when Vee and I were little and used to tell each other ghost stories. I just hoped the batteries still worked.

I climbed the stairs two at a time and trudged down the dark landing to my bedroom door. I pushed it open to find my window fully open and rain flooding into the room. I ran to it and reached out into the night air, trying to grab hold of the flinging glass shutters. The wind blew them in opposite directions making it hard to get a grip, but finally I felt the wooden frames of the shutters in my hands and yanked them shut. I let out a quiet sigh of exhaustion and hung my head in relief.

"Hello Nora…" spoke a voice from just over my shoulder. I spun around hoping to put a body to the voice but I couldn't see anything in the dark. It was pitch black. I could have sworn the person was right behind me but when I reached out all I could feel was empty air. Thunder rumbled from outside the window, causing me to jump. "Why so unsettled Nora?" The voice was so familiar. I could almost tell who was beyond the shadow yet the voice seemed to be clouded, veiled. "Don't frown Nora, you'll get wrinkles."

The veil lifted and I immediately knew who it was. "Patch, what are you doing here?"

I could just see his cold still eyes staring out into the darkness, two white specs staring from the depths. They seemed to be travelling up and down my body. Assessing me. Sizing me up. "I'm just a little bored Nora. You see, there's nothing to do in this damn town. So I thought that I'd venture on over to yours for some fun. What'd you say Nora, you up for some _fun?"_ The way he said 'fun' sent a shiver down my spine.

This wasn't Patch, it couldn't have been. Maybe the old Patch, but not the Patch who'd given up his chance at a human body for me. Not the Patch who was now my guardian angel.

Still startled by his tone I stuttered out, "P-Patch, I think you need to leave. You can come back tomorrow, when you're less….creepy."

"Creepy?" He half snorted, half laughed at the idea. He slinked closer towards me, a ray of moonlight running over his left eye. "You think I'm creepy do you? Am I creeping you out now?" he smirked, raising his eyebrows as he spoke.

I was so creeped it was not funny but something told me not to let him hear it, just like when I'd first met him. I mustered up all the courage I could and managed to utter a completely non-convincing, _"no."_

"Of course not," he said sarcastically.

I decided the best option was to take the offensive; I didn't feel like talking at the moment. I felt like hearing _him_ talk. "Where have you been? I haven't heard from you in four days."

He let out an overdramatic sigh. "Well, Nora," he started to explain as if he were talking to a five year old, "I'm a busy guy. I've had places to go and people to see. I can't be chained to you all the time, can I?" He raised his eyebrows at me as if he expected by to stutter out a 'but please…' just like a kid.

I just stared at him in disbelief. Didn't he remember that he had given up his chance at a body so he _could _be around me? Had he forgotten his promise to stay near, to be with me.

_'I haven't forgotten. I'm just overlooking it.'_ His voice rang clear through my mind.

I couldn't help but ask _'why?'_, only I didn't say it out loud. He still heard of course.

"It's just that I've been a little lost over these last few months, but I can see clearly now. I can see you clearly. See you for what you've always been to me. A vessel. A very hot vessel." I couldn't help but wince as he spoke these words.

In a few sentences he had managed to change his character completely, break my heart and imply that he was going to kill me. This couldn't be him. It's just a silly game, in a minute he would slip back into himself and tease me about the look I had on my face. He just needed to hear, out loud, that he'd won.

"Patch, do you want me to say it? Fine. I'm freaked. I'm _beyond_ freaked. Okay?" I hadn't wanted to admit it but I'd had to. If this were a game to him, then those words would end it. But if not, if this was serious, and the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach told me it was, the fact was no matter what I admitted, he was inches away from attacking me. All he would have to do was reach out. His fingertips would be able to curl around me easily, be able to dig into my flesh, to pierce my cold skin without an ounce of effort on his part. Admitting my fear had been my only option. My dignity could suffer a little blow, better it than me.

A crooked grin spread across his face. "I don't think that really needed to be said, Nora." I followed his eye line as it lowered to my hands, hands that were shaking uncontrollably. He laughed a quick, sinister laugh. So it wasn't a game.

"Patch," I said firmly, trying to control my shaking speech. "You need to leave. Right now," I told him, pointing to the door with as steady a hand as I could manage. Yet he stood there, unmoving. "I mean it. I want you out of my house. Now." I would've been on the verge of screaming if not for the fear that kept my voice at a strained whisper. "Or I'm calling the police."

"On what?" He said slyly as he produced my cell phone from his jean pocket. _Damn,_ how'd he get that? I was positive it had been in my back pocket the entire ride home. My thoughts flickered over to the cordless house phone, sitting on my bedside table two steps away.

_'Sorry Nora, phones are out.'_

I turned and stared at him. He simply motioned to the window and mouthed _"storm"_ as if to answer my confusion.

I had nothing to threaten him with. I knew it. He knew it. So here we were, at a standstill. I had no idea what to say or how to make him leave and he showed no sign of what he was thinking.

"Don't worry Nora, I'm not going to hurt you…_much,"_ he added as an afterthought. "You might even enjoy it." He gave a sinister smile that turned into a sharp laugh.

Without thinking I lunged for my window. I knew that there was no way I could climb down from it and I knew I'd just end up hurting myself if I flung myself from it, but nonetheless my survival instinct had told me to lunge.

Yet my survival instinct must have been seriously out of shape because less than a second after I'd lunged, Patch had caught me. It was so quick I almost didn't know it had happened. All I could feel were his arms pressing in on my torso, an iron circle I couldn't break. My arms couldn't move and in that second all I wanted to do was move them. My prayers were answered before I knew it, they were free but I barely had time to comprehend that fact before I collided with the wall. Patch had slammed me into the wall. Air gushed from my lungs, leaving me breathless. The wall before me was all I could see yet I could feel Patch's presence. A floorboard creaked as he took a step closer. He was now so close that I could feel every one of his tensed muscles through my soaked clothes.

I tried to get out from his trap but I just couldn't. I writhed and screamed under his grip. Patch remained still, letting me continue to struggle for about a minute. Allowing me to find out for myself just how pointless struggling was.

"All out of your system?" he asked waiting for my response. I let out a huff. "No, really Nora, you sure you don't want to kick or scream for a little while longer? It's actually quite hot."

"You're disgusting!" I spat at the wall.

"I recall a certain moan that makes me believe you think otherwise," he purred in my ear. That moan was going to haunt me till the day died, which might not have been to far into the future if I didn't escape the cave of Patch that I was locked into.

"You were Patch then, now you're not." That was all I could keep telling myself. Something had happened in the last four days. Something had changed Patch. Made him evil.

"Sorry Nora, but only I can decide when I'm Patch and when I'm not, and I choose to be Patch 24/7." At least the wit remained the same.

"Good for you," I said for lack of a better response.

"No, It's good for both of us." I felt myself being spun around. Within mere milliseconds Patch's lips were on mine. Kissing me with a scary intensity. I could almost feel the desire pouring out of him. He could probably feel my desire too, because all I wanted at this moment was him. The monster who had been scaring me seconds before was gone, in its place was my Patch. His stiff fingers ran through my hair before wrapping around the ends. His other hand travelled upwards under the soaked fabric that was clinging to my body. I knew how easy it would be to just let go, to give in. It would have been the simplest thing in the world. But I couldn't ignore what had just happened.

I pushed him off with all my strength and then some. His guard was down and he stumbled back a few paces. It was enough for me to be able to push past him and slip through the open bedroom door. I ran to the stairs and practically hurled myself down them. The speed caused me to loose my footing and I tumbled down the last four. Pain pulsed through my entire body but all I could think, all I could do, was run. I hoisted myself up and flew out the front door, grabbing the keys I'd left in the lock. Sprinting from the door of the house to the door of the Neon, I thanked God that I'd left the car unlocked. Wrenching open the door with a swiftness I'd never known I possessed, I got in and had the car on the road before I'd even closed the door.

Panting and clueless as to where I should be going, I drove. My driving went onto autopilot as I regathered my thoughts. Where to go? What was wrong with Patch? And the most immediate question of all, why hadn't he stopped me? My push had only sent him two or three steps back at the most. Even though I'd probably managed to get from my bedroom to the neon in about thirty seconds, with Patch's reflexes it would have been nothing to stop me from just reaching the stairs.

Maybe I'd pushed him onto something. Maybe a knick-knack blown onto the floor? Or a shard of glass from something that'd been damaged while the window was opened? I didn't know whether to be hopeful that this may have happened, or worried that Patch could be hurt.

I didn't know where to go either. I couldn't go to Vee's or anywhere else obvious. Yet remembering when I'd tried to hide in the cinema, I realised just how fast he'd find me no matter where I went. Maybe the key was to just keep driving, keep moving. Once I was on the tangle of back roads that surrounded the edges of Coldwater anyone would have a hard time finding me, and in this weather it would be nearly impossible.

I took a sudden left, trying to escape the main roads I had been travelling on. Lights flashed behind me and I couldn't help but scream. I checked my rear view mirror and saw it wasn't Patch. My breathing slowed to an almost normal rhythm and my eyes returned to the road.

About a minute later I saw the lights disappear and quickly turned my head around to see what had happed. I screamed again as I looked straight into Patch's eyes.

"Nora," he spoke with the same coldness he'd had at the house. The steering wheel slipped from my fingers as I was overcome with shock. Patch smiled at me and I felt the car spin out of control. The last thing I saw was Patch reaching over me to grab the steering wheel. Then the darkness came.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey everyone! So just a quick update, it's slightly shorter than the first one but I promise more is on the way. To charlottee96x and Stewart02, my first reviewers, thank you sooo much! I hope you all enjoy it, tell me what you think… Please Review!_

**CHAPTER 2**

I woke up cold, wet and moving. I couldn't bring myself to open my eyelids yet. There seemed to be an invisible weight resting upon them, holding them closed. The blindness only made my other senses sharper. I could hear, feel, even smell the rain all around me. Circling me, enveloping me. I was aware of heavy raindrops hitting my entire body, and I sensed my weight being shifted ever so slightly from left to right as I was moved forwards. There were two iron strong arms gripping me and my still bare feet swung in the cool air.

Curiosity got the better of me and I pushed my eyes open. What I found confirmed my suspicions; it was indeed, still raining. Peering upwards, I found the once comforting face of Patch, who was carrying me through the rain beside what looked like another one of Coldwater's back roads. I wondered why we weren't in the car, when it all came crashing back.

His menacing behaviour at the house, his reappearance in the back seat, me letting go of the steering wheel, him scrambling to grab it. By the look of his face, he hadn't succeeded. Blue, purpled and red were woven over his face in a blotched pattern of bruises. A line of dried crimson came from underneath his left nostril. If this was how the angel looked after the crash, I could only imagined what I looked like.

Patch seemed to be aware of the fact that I had awoken yet he did not respond to my investigatory glances. His face bore a look of quiet determination-determination to do what, I didn't know. The look frightened me a little and the fear forced my mind to swell with questions that I could not answer alone. _Where were we going? Why hadn't he killed me yet? Did he still plan on killing me?_

All of these questions needed answers and Patch was the only one who could answer them. But even though I wanted answers and it would be infinitely better for my stress level if I asked now, I couldn't bring myself to break the silence. The silence was safety. In the silence I could pretend that it was still the same Patch, that everything was fine.

The rain continued as we moved on, seemingly without direction. The road only stretched further and further with each step Patch took. He showed no signs of exhaustion even though he must have been carrying me for a fair while now. And even though I sorely wanted to prolong our silently romantic but highly strange walk, I couldn't help but shake the feeling that where ever we were headed, things weren't looking good for me. No matter how touching the gesture of saving me from dying in a Neon was, I couldn't help but think that Patch had an ulterior motive.

I said goodbye to the silence and opened my mouth, "You know you can put me down." At least once I begun to walk I would be able to gage my chances of escape.

Patch just kept moving, his face straight ahead. For a second I thought my words hadn't reached his ears but he answered after a minute, "broken ankle." Readjusting me in his arms as he spoke, his grip was becoming almost unbearably tight.

_How the hell had I broken my ankle in a car crash? _The ankle wasn't exactly the most exposed area. It just seemed impossible, and suddenly the pieces clicked. Knowing he would be able to hear my silent thoughts, I looked up at Patch for confirmation. He simply raised his eyebrows as he kept his eyes straight ahead.

I couldn't help but let out a gasp. So Patch had broken my ankle. Shattered my only real chance of escape. My breath quickened as I begun to understand the gravity of the situation I was in. The fact was that I probably wasn't going to escape, that I wasn't going to live. I'd never see my Mum or Vee again. Patch would simply make my body vanish and I would never be found.

Morbid thoughts continued to ravage my brain as I realised that we were no longer on the road. We were now walking-or in my case, being carried-across an open field. I strained my eyes, searching the night for what we could possibly be heading towards.

That's when I saw it. About 400 metres away from where we were stood a dilapidated old shack. As Patch continued forward at his steady pace the moonlight shown down into the cracks and crevices of the old building. It was weatherboard, a tiny box of a house. I could tell it had once been white but it was now closer to beige. There were broken wooden shutters hanging from the windows and fragments of shattered glass lay on the tiny porch that wrapped around the front. At one stage the shack may have been called an appealing cottage but now it stood dirty, worn and dejected.

_Why the hell were we going there?_ It looked like a horror movie set. My fear and frustration begun to turn to anger as I squinted up at Patch. _'WHAT ARE YOU DOING?'_ I mentally shouted at him. A slight smile appeared on his lips. Great, I amused him.

"Nora, you don't have to yell, we are about 2 centimetres apart if you hadn't noticed." He paused, his face looked pleased at the thought. _'And it's not like it's going to do you any good.'_

I scrunched my face up into a look of defiance. I begun squirming in his arms, trying to make it as hard as possible for him to continue. Not only was I fed up with his games, I also figured that there was a reason he'd taken me from the crash and that reason was waiting in the house. The longer it took for us to get there, the better.

With this in mind I rigorously fought against his iron grip. The crash must have made him really hurt him because he was having a hard time holding me now that I had begun to put up a fight. Patch desperately tried to restrain me as I sharply twisted my body back and forth. His arms became weak and gave out. I fell to the ground with a loud thud. The sudden loss of my weight threw Patch of balance and he crashed to the ground next to me.

Instincts hitting me all at once, I launched myself up off the ground. But my instincts hadn't taken into account my recently broken limb, and I fell back before I had even half stood up. Not wanting to lose the opportunity I'd fought for, I crawled through the wet grass, pulling myself along by my elbows. I couldn't exactly see where I was going. The only thing that I could do was move away from Patch as fast as I could. And that's what I did, elbow by elbow.

I stole a glance back at Patch as I pushed myself forward. He was just sitting there. Unmoving. Unworried. _Was I that small of a threat?_ I thought, slightly offended. Returning my gaze forward, I scrambled ahead. Something caught my foot and my elbows gave out from under me. I looked back to see what had caught me and saw nothing. I tried to free my foot but it stayed caught.

I took a glimpse back at Patch. He was just getting up now. I couldn't believe it. He casually started to walk over to me, as if it were a fine Summer's day. When he reached me, he crouched down beside me and closed his eyes. Shaking his head, exasperated, he sighed, "Nora…"

Opening his eyes up, he drew back his fist and brought it forward. Pain seared through my brain as it collided with my face. Violent flashes of colour crossed my vision. Black, red, blue. The grass before me morphed into the sky. Then the familiar feeling of numbness settled in, and darkness flooded my mind once again.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hey guys! Quick warning, there's a lot of exposition in this chapter because this chapter (as well as the one I'm currently working on) set up the entire story. Once again thank you to all my reviewers: Charlottee96x, Stewart02,bookwormgrl101, Hearts of Pjamas Ash x, liv408, JustAlison. You make me write faster! Hope you enjoy, tell me what you think. More Patch is on the way in the coming chapters! Please Review!_

**CHAPTER 3**

The darkness lifted from my mind as I came back to consciousness. I opened my eyes and saw what must have been the interior of the shack I had so desperately wanted to avoid. It was no better looking on the inside than it had been on the outside.

The furniture was in various states of distress, dotted unconsciously around the room. The ceiling was covered in a pattern of wet spots, letting the rain drip through. I sat up and swung my feet onto the floor, which felt damp beneath my feet. I made an effort to get up but as I stood a surge of dizziness and a sharp pain in my ankle crashed over me and I fell back onto the lounge.

"Welcome back, Nora." Patch spoke from next to the window. He was holding a shabby curtain back and peering out into the night. "I was getting so bored, waiting alone."

"Waiting…waiting for what exactly?" My voice trembled a little.

"Not for what…but for who," he smiled, "my partner." The words not only confused and frightened me but they also caused me pain. Pain like my lung had been pierced and now the air was slowly escaping. Once I had been his partner, his mate. Now I sat in the middle of nowhere waiting to die, most likely at the hands of his _new_ partner.

_'Who…who are they?'_ I even sounded out of breath mentally.

"Don't worry Nora, you'll love them." Patch said jubilantly. Dropping the curtain he begun walking over to me. His feet stopped just before me and he stood there, next to me, his eyes watching the door expectantly.

About a second latter, a bang sounded as the front door was kicked open. Shocked, I watched as long, pale, cascading hair emerged through the splintered doorframe. Dabria. _How could she be alive? Hadn't Patch 'taken care of her'?_

"Nora." She whispered to herself. Her sea blue eyes swept over my body, assessing my utter helplessness. "You can't imagine how glad I am to see you," a grin broke out across her face, "especially in the state you're in." Not taking her eyes off me, she acknowledged Patch's presence for the first time, "Well done my love." Patch beamed wickedly back at her.

_'My love?'_ Seriously, this couldn't be Patch. The Patch I knew would be making gag noises if somebody had referred to him as 'my love'. He wouldn't be wrapping his arms around her like he was right now. And holding her. And kissing her. It was that image that gave me the courage (and the anger) to question Dabria.

"What the hell did you do to Patch?" I shot at her. Their lips reluctantly broke apart. A silent moment of communication passed between them. Patch then grinned at her, and walked out of the shack through the creaky front door. Dabria let out a huff as she unwillingly tore her eyes from Patch's back and turned towards to me.

"I just thought it was time that you saw his true colours, Nora. It's not fair that he keeps stringing you along," she smirked.

I sat up. "True colours, huh? Funny how his 'true colours' only emerge when you're around. You're not fooling me Dabria, I know who Patch is. I know this isn't him. What did you do to him?"

"You really want to know, Nora?" She teased.

"Cut the crap and just tell me now." I spat back at her.

Her face turned sour at my words, apparently I was spoiling her little game. "Fine then, your dying wish is my command. Let me share my brilliance with you.

"After the night Patch just about killed me…yes he did attempt too." Seeing my confused face she explained, "you see he was in such a hurry to get back to you that he left before he entirely finished the job, so thankyou for saving my life." I mentally cursed at Patch, and at myself too, knowing that this whole situation could have been prevented.

Dabria had paused and was looking up towards the ceiling. It appeared as if she were reminiscing in some private place within her twisted mind. A clap of thunder came from beyond the crumbling walls and she resumed her explanation. "Well after that night, I couldn't stop thinking about him. The one whom I loved most. A near death experience will do that to you. I needed him, whether he desired me or not. I had to have him. So I looked to the heavens for answers, ways by which I could reclaim him as my own. It was a very difficult search, as I was on what you might call…_probation_. But I persisted, out of sheer love and finally came across something in The Book Of Enoch. The sacred book that possesses all knowledge…and secrets of Angels."

I definitely remembered what I knew of The Book of Enoch. It's hard to forget the book that's contents compel people to kill you. "Well among the stories of nephil vassals and human possession; I found an ancient spell, a spell that preceded the practice of pushing angels from heaven, forcing them to fall. The spell that was used to correct the behaviour of the 'troubled' angels."

I had no idea where she was going with this story; she definitely hadn't corrected Patch's behaviour. She continued, "The spell worked by distilling the angel's personality into separate components. Then the archangels would bring out the component that they desired."

I looked up at her pale, oval face. "I don't follow…"

She showed her annoyance but clarified, "Nora, they would take an angel who had been 'acting out' and preform the spell. Splitting the angel's essence, taking what makes them good and separating it from what made them bad. They would then bring out the angel's good side, in turn causing the eradication of the bad side."

"Dabria, you can't honestly expect me to believe that you've brought out Patch's _good_ side."

"I never said I used the spell _exactly_ as the archangels did. In fact I did quite the opposite. I brought out the component that _I _desired."

My mouth dropped open. "You brought out the bad… You made him evil?"

"Nora, Patch has always had evil inside him. I've just brought that evil to the surface."

That part wasn't my issue. I was focused on the 'eradication' of the other side. I knew I had to clarify with her, "But you've destroyed everything good in Patch?" _Everything that made me love him_, I added silently.

"It depends on what you see as good. For example, in my mind, removing you from the world…is good. And the new Patch, he agrees."

I didn't know what to say. I could feel my death approaching, my life span rapidly becoming shorter. Knowing this, I raised an issue that had been bothering me ever since the walk to the shack. "Then why didn't Patch kill me himself? He had ample time to do it."

She let out a high-pitched laugh, "Stupid human, do you not remember why I wanted to kill you myself last year? If Patch kills you, he becomes human and I will remain an angel. I'm not letting Patch and I become the next human-angel couple. And if I kill you, I prevent that from happening." She smiled.

It all made sense now, why he hadn't killed me. Why he'd saved me from the crash, why he'd brought me here. Patch couldn't do it himself. It had to be Dabria.

Dabria interrupted my sudden epiphany, looking rather bored. "So, dying wish granted." She paused, a sudden look of excitement appearing on her face. "Now all that's let for you to do is…die.

"Ready?"


	4. Chapter 4

_Hey people! Another chapter done! More exposition, I hope it all makes sense! To my gorgeous chapter 3 reviewers: Stewart02, bookwormgrl101, liv408 and charlotte96x: Thank you so much for your reviews! I was very nervous about the last chapter and your reviews made my day! Happy New Year Everyone! Please Review!!!_

CHAPTER 4

My line of vision was blocked as Dabria attacked. All my eyes could see was her vicious grin as she pounced. Images flashed through my head. Mum, Vee, Dad, Dorethea…Patch.

"Nora?"

I shut my eyes, saying silent goodbyes to all the people I'd loved.

"NORA!"

"AHHHH!" Dabria's scream of pain caused my eyes to fly open. What I saw was something I never thought I would see ever again. Patch, coming to my rescue. I didn't know why he was, or how he was even holding Dabria off after what he'd been through. But he was there, blocking her, fighting her off, saving me. My mind raced with thoughts. I didn't know whether to stay put, help him, try to escape or hide.

Patch answered my thoughts. "RUN!" He shouted back over his shoulder before receiving a blow to the jaw, courtesy of Dabria. I rolled myself off the lounge, getting ready to crawl to the door.

"GET UP NORA! _RUN_!" Patch yelled. He'd managed to throw Dabria into a wall and was now walking over to finish the job.

Weighing my options, I thought I may be able to push through the pain and I pulled myself up. I winced in anticipation of the pain that would soon be shooting through my ankle, but nothing came. I sprinted for the door, and still nothing came. Not bothering to question how this was possible, I continued to sprint out into the night, crashes and cries of pain continuing behind me.

It was still storming and I couldn't see much in the dark fields surrounding the shack. Thunder roared and raindrops hit my already soaking clothing. Lighting illuminated the sky and I saw about 10 metres from me was a silver sedan. I ran to it, praying Dabria had left the keys in it. My bare feet slipped and I slammed into the side of the car, a howl of pain escaping my lips.

I pulled myself back up and wrenched down the door handle. The door didn't budge. "Damn it!" I cried as I continued trying to open the door. I slammed my palm into the window out of frustration, causing my hand to throb furiously.

Hurting all over, I turned away from the car and ran. It was the best I could do. I just flat out sprinted in what I hoped was the direction of the road. Just one foot in front of another, as fast as I could. Hopefully it would be enough.

Tired and panting, I peered back towards the house. All I saw were the headlights of the sedan heading straight at me. I screamed and ran forward. I slipped again and fell face forward into the ground. The car screeched to a holt beside me and I looked up to see the passenger door being flung open.

"Nora! Get in!" Patch shouted from the driver seat. I got up, not knowing whether I could trust him enough to get in the car. For all I knew he could be playing me. But at least he hadn't run me down, which I took as a good sign. "Nora! Now!" His words made me decision for me and I jumped into the car, slamming the door behind me. Patch hit the gas and we were flying towards the now visible road.

"What the hell happened back there, Nora?!" He yelled, his volume causing the small car interior to vibrate.

"You're asking _me_? I think _you_ should be the one explaining!" I yelled back at him.

"_Me!_ The last time I saw you was at the library! Then I find you tonight, in the middle of nowhere! Dabria was about to kill you, you know!"

"Oh thankyou so much for telling me, I wasn't aware!" I screamed back at him. We both went silent.

"I'm sorry Nora. You just have no idea what seeing you in that cabin did to me. My heart is still racing. If I'd been there a second later, I could've lost you forever." His apology filled my cold body with warmth.

"I know…me too." I said, looking up at him. We went back to silence as we travelled through the night. I couldn't help but think about how he'd said the last time he saw me had been on Tuesday. Four days ago. The same amount of time Patch had been missing before he showed up in my room.

"Hey…you wouldn't, by any chance…remember where you were for the past four days?" I asked in a softer tone than I'd used during the screaming match.

"Of course I remember, I was…" he stopped. He moved his mouth to begin talking again. Then closed it. I raised my eyebrows. "So maybe I don't remember. Care to enlighten me?"

"I don't know where you were. You just disappeared. You didn't call or anything. And then you showed up in my room…" I trailed off, surely he would have to remember what had happened tonight.

"When did I show up?" _Apparently not._

"Earlier tonight. You don't remember?"

"No, I don't Nora. Just tell me what happened." He wasn't very pleased about not being able to remember.

I paused, wondering how I could possibly sit here and tell Patch the horrible things that he had done. He turned his head to look at me. His eyes locked into mine and I could see how desperately he wanted to know what he'd done. I opened my mouth and begun to recount the events of the evening. Once I'd begun, it was surprisingly easy to keep going.

I went through it all; him cornering me at my house, the neon crash, the walk to the shack, the spell. He flinched when I told him what he'd done to me; the broken ankle, the punch to the head. His face flared up with rage when I told him what Dabria had been planning to do to me. But he never interrupted. Just listened.

"…And that's when you came back in. Right before she…well, you know."

His face showed a pain expression as he remembered Dabria attacking me. The expression faded and he took a deep breath, "so you're telling me…that I'm...that I've…got a split personality?" Disbelief and shock coloured his voice all at once.

"Yes. Dabria found the spell in The Book of Enoch and used it, except in reverse. But something definitely must have gone wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"Well she told me that your other side, the one that she didn't need, would be destroyed. Yet…you're good-"

"For now." He said, sounding depressed.

"What?"

"Well, knowing Dabria, the magics she worked could have gone _very_ wrong. She's not one for details and anything from that book would have involved a ton of specifics. I mean, the fact that both of my halves are appearing is proof that she messed the spell up." He looked straight at me, ignoring the empty road. "We have no idea how long I'm going to be…good. I could change at any moment."

I shuddered. "But you killed Dabria, so shouldn't this spell thing end?"

"Nora, I didn't kill her. I just managed to slow her down. Then I grabbed her keys and came to find you." At least this time he owned up to not finishing her off.

I had been pretty sure he hadn't killed her. The way he had driven up to me in the field, his yelling at me to get in the car. It had made me suspect she wasn't gone. But hearing him say it out loud was no less of a shock, but I had to roll with the punches. "So, if your 'evil half'," it sounded strange to say that out loud, "does reappear, then it will most likely take me back to Dabria?"

"Probably." He said wearily.

"And we have no idea when your other half will appear?" He didn't seem to be grasping what I was trying to say. There was a minute silence.

"Shit!" And he finally got it.

"Yeah…"

"So I guess we have get you as far away as possible from me." He sounded very reluctant to turn his words to reality, which let me know that at least this side of Patch still loved me. He didn't want to leave me and I didn't want to leave him, but I didn't know if I could survive another run in with Dabria and evil Patch. I let out a sigh. _Why did my life have to be so complicated?_

"Where should I go? Or shouldn't I tell you? In case your other half finds out. I mean your other half might remember everything. Maybe you should just drop me somewhere and I'll run."

He mercifully stopped my rambling. "Nora, I know that I can't stay with you…but I'm not leaving you without some sort of protection from Dabria…or me," he added quietly. "Plus I don't think it would be too hard to find you at Vee's."

_Damn_. "Then where do I go? I can't go home, or to Vee's. They're my only emergency options and you've just ruled them out."

"I don't know. Let me think about it."

We sat in silence while Patch went through his list of options. The black road passed beneath the car soundlessly. Mass upon mass of open fields surrounded us down the sides of the road.

"Well, what are we doing Patch?" I looked over to him. His face appeared to be resolved.

"We're gonna visit an old friend's." He said before making a tyre screeching U-turn. "Buckle up, angel…"


	5. Chapter 5

_Hey everyone! Another chapter down, no idea how many to go. To my latest reviewers: charlottee96x, bookwormgrl101, liv408, Crystal Red Roses, Hopeless121, xXRavenBlackXx, The Archangel Network, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, lilywest, . – you're the reason I stay up writing (and the fact that I'm a Hush Hush nerd)! Hope you like it…please review!!!_

CHAPTER 5

"Nora…Nora…" Patch's soft voice gently drifted through my sleep-clouded mind. I felt someone shake my arm. "Nora, wake up. We're here…"

I opened my eyes and took in our surroundings. It was no longer night and now an overcast sky hung above us. We were sitting in Dabria's car at the top of a steep hill that was covered in trees. In the clearing in which we were parked I could see a small one-storey house. A faded lemon coloured fibro structure. It looked like no one had lived there in years. The grass grew wild and untamed, the ancient curtains were drawn over all the foggy windows and sitting in the middle of the lawn was a faded couch.

If I hadn't of seen the shack last night, then I would have been running for the hills at the sight of such a decrepit looking house. All the same though, I was a little anxious. Patch got out of the car and I followed his example. We begun walking up to the door, but anxiety got the better of me and I paused. Patch turned around and looked at me questioningly.

"So…this friend, you sure that they haven't like…moved or something?" I asked nervously. I wasn't too sure about being left alone with the person who lived here.

"Nah, he'll be here. Come on," he said taking my hand, "We don't know how long I have til…" He didn't finish but I knew what he was trying to say.

Patch led me to the door and knocked. About a minute later there was a loud crash and I heard someone stumbling around the house. "I'm coming," a heavy Irish accent shouted back at us.

I turned to Patch and whispered, "You brought me to Rixon's? Seriously, _Rixon's?!"_

"Nora, he's a good guy okay? Maybe not the most 'on the ball' at times, but a good guy."

Almost as if God was on my side, Rixon opened the door and the strong scent of alcohol hit us like a ton of bricks. I raised my eyebrows at Patch, he chose to ignore my reaction and looked back towards Rixon.

"You okay there, Rix?"

"Patch…oh, yeah, yeah. I'm good." Rixon replied, looking anything but. His tired bloodshot eyes spotted me. "Oh, you're here too. Nice to see you Dora."

"It's _Nora_, actually." _This was the best Patch could do? _

_'He's just needs to sober up, Angel.' _Patch was trying to set me at ease and it wasn't really working. Rixon ignored our silent moment of communication.

"So, not to be rude or anything…but what the hell are you doin' here?" Rixon's voice sung out from behind the fly screen door.

"I need you to help me out, it's Dabria."

"Ahh, say no more," Rixon said as he flung the screen door open, gesturing for us to come in.

I passed through the doorframe into a well-worn living room that clearly hadn't been updated since the 1970's. There were two faded pea green couches pushed up against adjacent walls with a tiny wooden box, that housed what I believed to be a TV, sitting in the corner. There were empty beer bottles, clothes and old newspapers strewn all over the room.

"Make yourselves at home," Rixon said. _Not likely,_ I thought. "So what's up with Dabria then? She still kickin', thought she was dead."

"Not so much…" Patch went to continue into a longer explanation but stopped. "Hey, if I tell you the what's going on now, will you remember tomorrow?" I was rather glad Patch had thought to ask.

"Oh yeah, of course I will. I'm not drunk. Just a little hungover." _Comforting. _Patch and I looked at each other. I knew he was reconsidering bringing me to Rixon's. I could see the guilt in his eyes.

"It's okay. It's not your fault. Tell him. He's all we've got."

Those words seemed to comfort Patch and he begun to explain the situation. Rixon did need to clarify a few things, as he'd never heard of anything like what Dabria had done, but on the whole he took it well. Patch finished and a puzzled look came over Rixon's face.

"I understand what Dabria's done, and that you two _really_ do need help but I'm failing to see why you came to me. I'm a fallen angel mate, not a fairy godmother. I can't break the spell."

Patch shot Rixon a reproving look, "I just need you to look after Nora for me. You're the only one I trust enough to do it." His words made me feel warm, yet at the same time the feminist in me felt the urge to shout _'I don't need to be babysat.'_ "It's only till I can find Dabria and put an end to her…permanently this time."

Rixon hesitated, "can I see you for a minute Patch?" Rixon asked. "Alone," he added, looking at me. "Nothing personal, love."

Rixon lead Patch through the house to one of the rooms further back. I waited about 30 seconds before breaking down and succumbing to the urge to follow and eavesdrop.

I crept quietly down the hall, thankful that the floorboards didn't creak. The boys' voices grew louder and I pressed my ear up to the door that they were behind.

"Patch, you've gotta be jokin'. I can't baby sit a teenage girl. I'd do a lot for you mate but I'm not sure I can do that." So obviously Rixon wasn't too thrilled with the idea of looking after me.

"It's not babysitting. I just need you to keep her safe for me. I'm endangering her every second I'm near her. I can't leave her alone, if Dabria found her…" his voice wavered on the last three words.

"Yeah, but why does it have to be me?" Rixon replied, ignoring Patch's heartfelt plea. "Don't you have _any_ other friends? I know you're not the most social guy but you have to know some others." He really didn't want me to stay. I tried hard not to take it personally. _He would be saying the same thing no matter what,_ I repeated in my head_._

"I love Nora more than _anything_ else in the world. Now that I have her, I don't know if I can lose her. Rixon, you're the only one I trust." There was a minutes silence. "Weren't you considering guardianship? It'll be good practice. She's not difficult, seriously I'll bet you $20 she'll just sit there." Patch was now gripping at straws.

There was another pause and then Rixon spoke, "alright, I'll do it. And I'll take your $20 no matter what she does."

"I can live with that." Patch said sounding relieved. I scrambled back down the hall as I heard them walking to the door. I threw myself into the couch and tried to look natural.

Patch and Rixon came back down the hall laughing. Patch gave me a knowing look, clearly he knew I'd been listening.

"So I guess you're gonna be staying with me for a while Nora." Rixon said. "Sorry about before, didn't mean to be rude."

"It's alright," I said, giving him a small smile. I may not have been to keen to entrust my life to Rixon but Patch was, so I had to stay.

I felt like a five year old being dropped off for a play date as Patch went over everything I would need (the most important being iron pills and clothes) with Rixon. Ten minutes later, Patch and Rixon said their goodbyes. An unspoken promise passing between them as they did.

I walked Patch down the drive, back to the car. Rixon was looking on from the front door. Patch paused before getting in, turning back towards me. Leaning up against the car, he looked me over. I gazed back at him. I forced my memory to take in everything I saw. Every scar, every freckle, every kink in his messy hair.

"I don't want you to go," I said, breaking the silence.

_'I don't want to, Angel, I have to.'_ He put his hand on my lower back and pulled me forward until my body was firmly against his. He pressed his lips to mine and a familiar feeling of danger and desire washed over me. I knew in my heart that that feeling would always be there, no matter how long we were together, no matter how long we were apart.

He wrapped his hand around the back of my neck, pulling me closer still. The kiss turned desperate, and I felt every ounce of him crying out. Cursing Dabria for what she had done to him, what she had done to us.

He pulled his lips from mine, "I gotta go, Angel."

I closed my eyes and nodded. When I opened them Patch was already in the car. He took one glance back at me as he started the car.

_'I love you Nora.'_ Then he drove off into the horizon.

_P.S if you are wondering what happened on the way to Rixon's (no Nora didn't sleep the whole way!), I did write it but it just didn't quite fit. If people want me to, I'll post it when at the end of the fic._


	6. Chapter 6

_Hey fellow Hush Hush nerds! So this is just a really quick update. The chapter doesn't further the plot, it's only purpose is just to build the relationship between Rixon and Nora. To my latest reviewers: The Archangel Network, liv408, xXRavenBlackXx, JustAlison, bookwormgrl101, Crystal Red Roses, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, love-30stm, BlackRabbit23, Hopeless121 – thank you all so much for your feedback! Hope you enjoy this chapter, the next one will be up very soon! Please Review!!!_

CHAPTER 6

"Hey, Nora. Do you want me to take you into town to get your stuff?" Rixon yelled from somewhere out the back of the house. I still hadn't seen the entire house so I couldn't say where he was yelling from. "I mean, I don't want you to die from lack of whatever it is when Patch is going to all the effort of killing Dabria."

I let out a sigh. "Sure," I called back from the pea green couch I'd been sitting on for the last hour. After Patch had left, I'd been too broken up to do anything else but come in and sit on the couch.

All I could do was sit and stare at the clock, wondering. _Was Patch evil right now? Was he with Dabria? Were they fitting in a make out session before they came to murder me?_

Rixon entered the room and looked at me, confused. "Have you been there the whole time?" He asked looking around the room for evidence that I'd moved.

"Yeah…" I answered a little unsure where he was going with this.

"Uh, Nora it's alright if you want to move…. You don't have to stay in the one place." He spoke slowly, as if I was catatonic and didn't want to further disturb me.

I pouted, "I know that, I'm not an idiot."

Rixon tilted his head and shrugged his shoulders, "sitting in the one spot for an hour doesn't exactly say 'intelligence'."

_Great,_ I was being hunted down by one and a half psychos and my only protection was acting like a ten year old boy.

Rixon walked over to the sideboard, grabbing his keys and shrugging on his jacket. He turned back to me. "Ready?" he asked.

I took a deep breath, "sure." I got up off the couch, my legs flooding with pins and needles thanks to the motionless hour. He pulled open the front door for me and I went to go through but stopped when something on the sideboard caught my eye. The phone.

"Um, hang on. I need to make a few calls before we go." I said reaching for my cell in my jean pocket. The pocket was empty. _"Damn, stupid evil Patch," _I muttered.

"You okay there, love?"

I let out a sigh, "can I borrow your phone? Patch stole mine."

He passed me the phone. "Whatever, find me when you're done," he said before heading outside to fill in the time.

I didn't want an audience, even though I didn't really care if Rixon heard me, so I ventured towards the back of the house for the first time. Coming off the narrow hallway were various shoe-box size rooms. A laundry and 3 other bedrooms.

The biggest (relatively speaking, of course) was clearly Rixon's, it just smelt like him. Not to mention the fact that it was the messiest of the three. I didn't want to disturb his the mess or stay near the smell so I chose the first of the other two bedrooms.

It had been painted the same green as the couch, evidently a long time ago as the paint was now chipped and faded. I sat on the double bed that basically took up the entire space and dialled Vee's number.

"Vee's phone," a sing song sounding Vee answered. It was weird to think that to other people this was just another day. I felt my heart ache a little as I went on.

"Someone's happy," I tried to work a little cheer into my voice, best not to alarm her with the joyless tone I'd been using with Rixon.

"Nora! Where have you been?!" She didn't sound concerned or mad, she sounded curious. "Let me guess, you spent the night with Patch?"

I hadn't known what I was going to say to Vee. I had only been away for one night but I hadn't had the faintest idea how to explain it to her. Luckily she'd found a way to explain it to herself.

"Don't worry Nora, Dorothea called and I told her that you spent the night here and just forgot to call." And she'd found a way to explain it to Dorothea, I knew there was a reason I loved Vee.

"Yeah, I'm with Patch. Thanks for covering-"

"Oh my god!" Vee squealed down the line. "You finally did it! Nora you rebel! So how was it? How was he? What did it look like?" I decided to stop her before she gave herself a coronary.

"Vee slow down, we didn't do it. We just…" this was the hard part, coming up with a reason why I wouldn't be back in Coldwater for god only knows how long, "…decided to take a road trip."

Not sure where the hell that had come from, I chose to run with it, "after all it is Summer, and we're only going to be seventeen once and…we wanted to be together before life got in the way…" The last words stung as I said them aloud. Life definitely had gotten in the way. "So I need you to kind of keep covering for me as long as possible…"

"Nora, one night was hard enough to do. Especially when Dorothea asked to talk to you. And what about your mum? Imagine how she's going to feel when..." I zoned out as Vee went on, listing all the ways I was hurting people by running away with Patch. I wanted to stop her, to tell her the truth. But I couldn't. When I'd chosen Patch I'd chosen a life of lies and secrecy. Now I was paying the price.

Tears welled up as Vee went on about how much I would be hurting my mother, how my mother would never trust me again. I tried to control my voice as I stopped Vee, "Your right, it's better for them to be hurt by the truth than a lie. Tell them I'm with Patch and he loves me and we're safe."

With those last words I hung up the phone and broke down. All the hurt, all the anger, all the pain. I just let it flow. My face became drenched as I cried tear after tear. Every emotion that had been building up since Patch had spoken from the darkness last night came rushing out. I could barely breathe, sadness clogged my airways.

"Nora…" Rixon spoke from the doorframe.

I looked up at him, not knowing how to explain the outburst. He didn't need an explanation though. He sat down next to me on the bed. "Are you okay?"

I couldn't bring myself to answer. All I could do was allow Rixon to pull me into his chest as I continued to cry. I wasn't okay, and I didn't think I could ever be again.


	7. Chapter 7

_Hey guys! Here's another (less depressing!) chapter. As always, to my reviewers: liv408, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, BlackRabbit23, The Archangel Network, bookwormgrl101, BlazingWolfFire – I'm loving all your reviews, thank you so much! Hope you enjoy this one too…Please Review!_

_P.S If you want to see what Rixon's car looks like then google: 1969 Plymouth gtx_

CHAPTER 7

I awoke the next morning enveloped by green walls and Rixon. His right arm and leg were draped over me and I was pinned beneath them. My face felt sticky from dried tears of last night and through the small window above the bed, a ray of light lit up my feet and caused the rest of the room to feel overheated and stuffy. I was about to shake Rixon awake when a bird cawed outside the window causing Rixon's head to spring up.

"What? Where? Who's there?" He asked as if still in a panicked dream. He looked down at me, "oh, it's just you." He said, clearly relieved. Noticing his limbs were trapping me from movement, he apologized. Then he pulled himself up into a sitting position looking a tad embarrassed as he did so.

I stayed horizontal, I didn't feel like moving yet.

"You okay, love?" Rixon asked, looking down at me.

I rubbed my eyes for sleep while considering his question. Last night I had felt like I would never be okay again, that nothing would ever be okay again. But yet the sun was shining. That fact didn't fill me with a sense of hope or anything. But it reminded me that no matter what was going on inside my head, life was still being lived. I would just have to be okay.

"Yeah, I'm okay," I said answering Rixon.

He could see I wasn't really, but he ignored it, knowing that if I had wanted to talk about it I would've. "You want something to eat?"

"Sure. "

"C'mon…" Rixon pulled me up off the bed and led me down the hallway. At the end of the hallway furthest from the font door there was a small kitchen with a tattered table and two chairs shoved in the corner. Rixon dropped my hand and went to find us some breakfast.

"What you got?" I asked as he rummaged through the fridge, his body blocking my view.

"Well, it looks like Guinness or… Guinness," he said pulling out two cans and holding them up to me. I rolled my eyes at him.

"You, honestly have nothing else?" He nodded. I shoved past him to get a look at the fridge and saw that, indeed, there was nothing else. I pulled open the cupboard doors trying to find some source of sustenance that wasn't alcoholic. All I managed to do though was disturb the cobwebs that had formed over the cupboard handles. "So what are we gonna do?"

"Hey, I gave my suggestion," he smiled waving the cans of Guinness.

I refused to acknowledge his 'suggestion', "weren't we going to into town yesterday?" He nodded, opening the can and taking a sip. "Well, lets go now," I said before taking the can from his hands and dumping it in the bin next to the fridge.

"Nora…" he said his eyes heartbroken, not moving from the bin.

"C'mon," I told him as I pulled him by his wrist to the car.

Rixon's car was just as outdated as his house. Its metallic grey colour of it's boxy body was just visible from underneath the dirt sheath that covered the entire car.

"You ever think about, I don't know, washing it?" I joked teasingly.

"You offering?" He smiled as we got into the car.

The car roared to life as Rixon turned the key and we were off. An oldies radio station played in the background as we drove down the driveway and onto the foggy backwoods roads that led into town.

"So what's this place that we're heading to called?" I asked.

"I was thinking we'd head to Wisteria Falls. It's not a big place. Coldwater is probably the biggest place around here but that's hours away and it's not like we can go there anyway."

I nodded, "yeah, that's definitely not an option… So how far's this Wisteria place then?"

"It's about another twenty minutes. We'll be able to get everything we need, including the…what is it you need?"

"Iron. And clothes. And breakfast. And a hairbrush."

"Gee, miss high maintenance. You do remember you don't have any money don't you?"

That threw a spanner in the works. "Oh…yeah."

"Don't worry, I'll cover it."

"Thanks."

There was an awkward pause before Rixon broke it, "welcome to Wisteria Falls."

Wisteria Falls was a tiny huddle of buildings that looked like they'd been built in the early 1900's. Mostly wooden, with a big 2 storey house-like building in the centre that dominated the tiny town. There were a few people walking around, a few dotted at the tables of a café, a few on the road. Just the regular small town folk. Rixon pulled into a car spot just around the corner from the main street.

Cold air hit me as I got out of the car. "Geez, It's freezing!"

"It's not too bad," Rixon said tilting his head to the side as he locked the car. "So do you wanna go get your clothes first…cause if you don't mind me saying, the one's your in are a bit ripe."

I elbowed him, feigning mock horror, as we walked side by side towards the main street. "Just saying…" he said as he rubbed the spot where I'd elbowed.

I looked down at my clothes. They were pretty filthy, not to mention the fact that they were starting to smell. "I guess you're right though. Where do I go?"

"See that maroon building on the first corner?" He pointed towards it.

"Yeah."

"Well that's the pharmacy and for the clothes your probably gonna want to go here." We came to a stop in front of a quaint shop with three mannequins in the window. Each one had on a different coloured turtleneck and parka. "Not the most fashion forward but it'll do the trick."

"It's fine." I said walking over to the shop door.

"Wait, here's some money for your stuff," he pulled out his wallet and flipped through the bills, counting, "there $300 should be enough for this and the pills right?"

"It'll be plenty. Where'd you get that kind of money from?" I asked, a little shocked. He still had at least another four hundred dollar notes in his wallet.

"Poker and pool, the only respectable way to make a living."

"Of course, should've known. After all you are Patch's friend."

He smiled as he tucked his wallet away and turned to leave. "Hang on, where are you going?" I called after him.

"Someone has to feed us," he yelled back, continuing on down the street.

About an hour and a half later I was walking back from the pharmacy, towards the car for lack of a better place to go, when I saw it. Her. Coming out of a shop a few doors down was that pale blond hair that now haunted my nightmares. Dabria.


	8. Chapter 8

Hey guys! Here's a short update. Originally it was going to be a longer with a lot of other stuff but as you know I love a cliff hanger, so I cut it off here. The next one is on the way! To my reviewers: xXRavenBlackXx, BlackRabbit23, memily, Xxkissesandcuddlesxx, forbidden fruit gone goth, bookwormgrl101, BlazingWolfFire and megan: love you all so much! Hope you enjoy this…Please Review!

P.S I eagerly await my cookie bookwormgrl101CHAPTER 8

I couldn't move. I was frozen in place. It was definitely Dabria, the woman who wanted to take my life from me. The woman that had changed the Patch I loved into the distorted perversion of the himself that he now was. The woman who wouldn't rest until I was resting in peace.

I felt a hand come over my mouth and I tried to scream but no sound escaped my trapped lips. Patch. 'Nora, do not make a noise.' The words rung clear in my mind, Irish accent and all. Rixon. I let out a breath of relief and disappointment through my blocked lips.

'I can see her too. Here's what we're gonna do, we're gonna go into this building,' I saw an image in my mind of the two storey building in the centre of town, the building we were standing outside, 'there's an exit in the back we can use to get to the car. Whatever you do, DO NOT speak.'

He left his hand there for another couple of seconds, probably checking to see if I would follow his instructions or not, before releasing me. Dabria was still walking, her back to us. She was about fifty metres away, blocking the direct route to the car. If she turned her head back, all would be lost.

Rixon ushered me towards the cream coloured building, it was also wood panelled just like everything else in town. I looked up at the façade for a quick second before Rixon pushed me to the front door, 'Wisteria Falls Town Hall Est. 1901' the lettering at the top of the building read.

We were welcomed into the building by an empty, marble tiled foyer. Our footsteps echoed off the walls as Rixon grabbed my hand and led me towards the back of the building. We walked through an empty conference room before reaching a solid oak door. Rixon nudged it open and pulled me through. We were back outside. On one of those streets only small towns ever have, the ones where the trees on the sides of the street mat together to form a roof of branches over the road.

'Almost there.'

Rixon guided us down the street and through lane which opened onto the street where the car was parked. Rixon held out a hand to block me from going forward as we came to the end of the lane, pausing to look up and down the street.

'We're fine.' I was pretty sure the volume of my sigh of relief broke Rixon's no speaking rule but I didn't care. We both rushed over to the car. I got in, taking care not to slam the door loudly enough to draw attention. Rixon flung his bags into the backseat, not caring about what happened to their contents. I followed suit.

Rixon turned the key in the ignition and soon we speeding past the 'Thankyou for visiting Wisteria Falls' sign. Silence heavy with relief and fear hung in the air between us. The car flew over the bumps and curves of the backwoods roads.

"So, do we just go back to yours? Do we run? Do you think that Patch, the other Patch, told Dabria to look there?" My reel of questions obliterated the silence.

Rixon guided the car over a sharp turn, "Dabria doesn't know where I live, Patch is the only person I've ever told. For her to show up, it doesn't seem like coincidence…but my gut is telling me it probably is."

"What do you mean?" How could Dabria showing up be 'just coincidence'?

"Well, Wisteria Falls is a bit over half an hour from my house. It's not really close, I mean there are smaller towns closer to where I live. And if Dabria had been told that you were with me, why would she bother to stop in some podunk town before killing us? I'm not familiar with the inner workings of Dabria's severely messed up head, but I'd think that she would skip the stop over and come straight for us if she knew where you were."

"So your saying that you think we should go back to the house…"

He nodded, "look, I know you're scared but Patch left me in charge of keeping you safe. Right now I think going back to the house is the best way to keep you safe."

I swallowed involuntarily. I didn't want to sit in the one place. I wanted to keep moving far, far away from Dabria. I wanted to run. But Patch left me with Rixon for a reason. "Okay."

Twenty quiet minutes later we were pulling up in Rixon's steep driveway. Rixon got out first, standing still waiting to see if anything or anyone emerged from the edges of the clearing. Nothing did and he signalled for me to follow him into the house. I grabbed the bags, knowing I wouldn't have the nerve to come back outside to get them later. Rixon was holding the door open as I staggered through, off balance due to the amount of shopping bags weighing me down. I dropped them all on the couch.

"Stay here and don't move. I'm gonna cover the windows and check the locks." I didn't think that locks would exactly deter Dabria but I stayed put as he said. Rixon's footsteps were so silent that I just about had a heart attack when he tapped my shoulder to tell me he was done.

"Nora, it's okay. No one's here and no one is coming for us." As I caught my breath I looked up into his eyes, I could tell he doubted his own words. He took me into a hug and I buried my face into his chest.

Irony struck as there was a loud knock on the door. I jumped again, a small scream erupting from my lips as I did. Rixon and I both looked towards the door, waiting for another sound but there was nothing. Rixon turned my face towards his, 'Hide. Don't come out until I say.'

He released my jaw from his grip and I dashed down the hall and into the laundry. I sat with my back to the washing machine, the cold of its metal build seeped straight through my jacket.

'Remember what I said. Not until I say so.' Rixon's words came back into my mind as I heard the door click and swing open.


	9. Chapter 9

Hi everyone! New chapter time, I think your going to like it (hopefully)! To my reviewers: teagan2009, xXRavenBlackXx, BlackRabbit23, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, MicharaHitomi, Crystal Red Roses, BlazingWolfFire, bookwormgrl101, The Archangel Network, liv408, EmJemXx & love-30stm: thank you for all your reviews (I still squeal every time I read a new review)! Hope you enjoy this…Please Review!

CHAPTER 9

My mind was racing. It was Dabria, it had to be. The Wisteria incident and now a knock at the door. It wasn't possible for it to be coincidence. It wasn't like salespeople would be bothering in this area and from what I could tell, Rixon didn't have the kind of friends that would knock.

My breathing was growing louder and louder, and I concentrated on quietening it as my ears strained to hear who was at the door. It wasn't Dabria. That much I could be sure of. The voice was too low, too rough. I edged towards the door of the laundry, trying harder to hear what was happening at the door. All it took was one clear sentence and I knew who was at the door.

Without thinking, I sprang from the floor and bounded into the living room-where I was in full view of the person at the front door. I stood frozen on the spot, the sheer stupidity of my actions overwhelming me. I had no idea which Patch had shown up, yet when I'd heard him at the door my natural and only instinct was to run towards him.

"NORA! What did I say?" Rixon kept his ground at the door as he shouted. He had one arm across the doorjamb, attempting to block Patch from entering, the other was pointed at me. "Get back!"

I went to take a step back but was stopped as Patch breathed my name, "Nora…"

That one word, those two syllables, the way he spoke them…the love in them, the pain behind them. I knew it was Patch, the right Patch. I'd never felt so sure of anything in my entire life. I let out a breath of relief, the kind of breath that you can't help but let out before you cry. I leapt towards him, all I wanted to do was be in his arms.

Rixon had other ideas though, "Nora! Stay Back!" Both arms went up across the doorway and he faced me, his back to Patch. "You have no idea which…side…of Patch this is! I am not letting you near him."

"I'm glad your taking your role seriously Rix, but it's me…the real one. If it was the other 'side', wouldn't I have attacked Nora on sight?"

Rixon now awkwardly twisted to the side. I could tell he didn't want to take his eyes off me but he didn't want to have his back to Patch either. "You could be playing us! Nora, get back!"

"Gravenstein!" Patch exclaimed.

"Huh?" What the hell was he talking about?

Patch ignored my confusion and looked at Rixon, eyebrows raised in expectation of an answer. Rixon untwisted his body from it's distorted position and let his arms fall from the door. He walked away, leaving the door wide open, "it's him."

I had no idea what happened that had caused Rixon to surrender…but I didn't care. I ran to Patch, his arms pulling me into him. The world seemed to fall away as we stood there, locked together.

"I missed you," we both whispered at the same time. Mirrored smiles appeared on our faces. All the worries that we'd both been weighed down by were gone. In that moment all we were was happy.

"You two mind? You're so cheery it's makin' me queasy," Rixon said, interrupting us, fresh can of Guinness in hand. Of course he had to be himself and ruin our moment. Patch and I let our holds on each other loosen and we walked over to the opposite couch to the one Rixon was now on. Patch sat and I sort of curled up in his chest. I didn't know how long this visit would last, and I didn't want to waste a second of it. If that meant gluing myself to Patch the entire time he was here, then so be it.

"So where have you been?" Rixon asked through sips of Guinness.

"To be honest, I don't know. I'm really sorry Nora, and to you too Rix, but I…I…" Patch's face was masked with misery as he struggled to find his words.

"Didn't manage to 'end' Dabria?" Rixon interjected.

"Yeah… It's just that as I was driving away yesterday, I changed. I didn't know it was coming till it had happened. It was like being knocked out cold and then suddenly waking up, only long after the fact."

"Where were you when you changed?" I had to know. If he had been close to here, then the other Patch surely would've figured out my whereabouts and tipped off Dabria.

"I was near Portland," Relief flooded my body.

"Hang on, where did you change back though, that's more important," I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of that problem.

"I…woke up…on the far outskirts of Coldwater, Rix," Patch replied.

"Okay," I breathed. "I mean, that's good right? It doesn't seem like your other half has cottoned on to me being with Rixon."

"For now." Rixon said solemnly. There was an awkward moment in which no one said anything.

"Do you wanna walk with me?" Patch asked.

"Yeah…we should definitely, walk." I think Rixon was picking up on the undertone in my words and he left the room. "Just let me get changed first, okay?"

"Sure." I grabbed the bags from the clothing store and practically sprinted to the bedroom I'd fallen asleep in last night. I was about to put on my new clothes when I realised how much I needed a shower. "I'll be ten minutes, tops!" I called to Patch as I closed the bathroom door.

I showered in record time and within five minutes was back in the bedroom. As I pulled on the jeans I'd brought, the feel of fresh clothing against my skin after the past two days made me almost as happy as I was when I saw Patch. I put on two of the sweaters I'd gotten; after all it was fairly cold out. My hands shook with anticipation as I laced up my new sneakers. As I grabbed a parka I also got the iron tablets. I put the little bottle into the parka pocket and zipped it up. I didn't want to have to come running back for iron. I found an old brush in the bathroom and combed my hair through. I peered into the foggy mirror. It might not have been a huge improvement but at least my hair was brushed and my clothes were fresh.

"Ready?" I asked as I walked to the front door, Patch getting up to follow. I was out of breath from the rapid makeover but I didn't care. Nothing could put a damper on this moment.

"Be careful Nora!" I heard Rixon call as we left.

We walked in a comfortable quiet for some time, Patch leading the way through the woods that surrounded the house. My hand never fell from his. We stopped when we came to fallen trees blocking our way. Patch always having to help me over, always requesting a kiss in return. I was always happy to oblige.

"Hey, so what was that Graven…whatever thing about?" I asked as we walked.

"Oh, that thing. Yeah, you probably though we were crazy or something. See, when I dropped you off I told Rixon that he would be able to tell if it was actually 'me' if I said that word. Like a password."

"Right…that was clever. Why Gravenspeil?"

"Gravenstein," he corrected through a smirk, "it's just a place we've been to. And the best we could come up with."

I let out a small laugh. Patch came to a halt and I stumbled into his side.

"What?"

He gestured to the small cabin that was suddenly appeared in front of us. I looked at him, questions swirling in my eyes.

"Well, before I moved to Coldwater to…you know," I believe 'kill you' were the words he was looking for, "I lived here. Rixon and I won the land in a poker game and the two houses that are on it."

"How does that not surprise me?" His only answer was a crooked grin. "So why did you get the cabin and not Rixon?"

"Superiority," he joked. "Nah, Rixon and I played for it."

"Of course. Is there anything in your life you haven't won in a card game?"

"I can think of one thing," he said leaning in and giving me a soft kiss. "Don't you wanna see it?" He asked with a childlike enthusiasm.

"Okay," I said rolling my eyes at him. He tugged me by the sleeve to the cabin. The door creaked open as we walked in. The inside was nothing special, but it was liveable.

The whole place was essentially one room except for what I could only assume was a bathroom in the far right corner. On the left side there was a small kitchenette and table. The centre housed a couch and TV, which looked even older than the one at Rixon's and on the right side was a double bed pushed up against the wall.

"What's the verdict?" Patch asked as he walked over to the kitchen.

"It's pretty good for a poker winning," I said. He appeared to be looking for something in the cupboards. "What are you trying to find?"

"Ah ha! Don't worry I got it." He said pulling out one of those camping lantern things from the cupboard. "When I moved Rixon cut off the power down here. But luckily we have this," the light came on and lit up the majority of the tiny cabin.

He put the lamp down on the small table next to the couch and sat down. I stayed standing and walked around looking over the cabin. I hadn't even been to Patch's place in Coldwater so I was curious to see what his ex-residence looked like.

There wasn't much in the way of personal items, no photos that I could see, no books. There was a loose playing card here and there, a random beer bottle lying empty on the floor. I felt Patch's hand on my shoulder and turned around.

We looked at each other in silence. I had the same feeling I'd had when he'd left, I wanted to take in everything about him. To cast him in stone inside my memory.

"How are you doing, Angel. Really doing?"

I let out a sigh. "I'm better…now that you're here," I whispered, gripping the collar of his tattered hoodie and pulling him closer.

"Me too," Patch's eyes flashed as he swept me up into a kiss. A kiss of need. A kiss of want. A kiss of sheer desire. Shocks ran through him into me. Electricity sparked from his caressing fingertips. The tension, the passion swelled within me. The intensity of his touch sent a shiver of fear down through me. Yet at the same time I felt safer than I had in a long time. The problems with Dabria, what had happened to Patch… every thing just drifted away under his touch.

Being close to Patch, closer than we were now, was all I wanted. Emotions overwhelmed me. The 'what ifs?' in my head were brushed away by the hands that were now exploring the underside of my shirt. I was nervous. I was anxious. Heck, I was a little queasy. But I was sure of this. I was ready. We were ready. I felt it with every fibre of my being.

Patch seemed to sense my inner epiphany, his lips leaving mine for a second. His eyes bore into mine. I knew he could sense the yearning, the craving that flowed freely through my body. The desire that only he could satisfy.

"Nora, are you sure?"

I matched his gaze, losing myself in his eyes. All I wanted at that moment, all I needed was him. Nothing else. His body pulled me towards him. I was powerless under its call. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pulled myself up to meet his face.

"Completely."

Patch didn't need to be told twice. He dragged me back into him, our lips meeting with a fierce intensity. There was no turning back. I wrapped my legs around his core. The pressure must've been painful but he didn't say anything and I wasn't going to relinquish my hold. My fingers locked around lumps of his matted hair. Closer. Nearer. It was all I could think. Everywhere I looked, everywhere I felt was Patch. But it wasn't enough. Closer. Nearer.

I could feel my body being moved from side to side ever so slightly and realised he was carrying me to the bed. A stumble caused our lips to part for a second and a pirate smile spread over Patch's face before it was wiped away by my lips returning to his. He lowered us down onto the bed. I sunk into it, the mattress swelling around me, enveloping me. Patch held his weight above me, his arms on either side of me felt like a cage that I never wanted to escape.

My unsteady hands unzipped Patch's hoodie as we kissed and he pulled my jacket off with one smooth motion. He did the same with his own hoodie, revealing a white t-shirt underneath, much to my dismay. He quickly solved the situation by removing it and throwing it to the floor. Before I knew it, every piece of clothing was on the floor with it. To my surprise, I didn't care. I'd thought nerves would have been running through me but the only thing flowing through me was passion with a slight dash of anticipation.

Patch released my lips and I used their moment of freedom to stutter out a very awkward, "do you have any…you know?"

He did know, and as I suspected he had one sitting in his wallet. I reluctantly broke my tight hold on him as he leaned over the side of the bed to grab the wallet.

With lightning speed he was back over me, our bodies pressing back up against each other as if nothing had been said. His skin felt like heaven pressed up against mine. It moved against mine as if it were silk. Silk that I needed to be wrapped in. All the awkwardness melted away. I knew that this was right. Patch was my first love and my only love. He was who I wanted, the only one I wanted. I would always love him. Forever.

I woke up greeted by an early morning sky that shone through the window. Patch was still asleep next to me. I couldn't help by smile as I watched him sleep. I still couldn't believe what had happened last night. It had been so amazing and I knew I would remember it till the day I died.

Getting up, I grabbed my clothes from the floor. Walking towards the bathroom, I took one look at Patch before I slipped in to get dressed. The cold morning air caused goose bumps to rise up on my pale flesh and I was glad I had my parka. Walking back out to the bed, I couldn't help but smile. A weight that I hadn't even known I was carrying had been lifted last night. It felt as if I hadn't lost anything, but that I'd regained the connection between Patch and I. The connection that had been worn away by Dabria's games. I lay back down next to Patch curling myself into his body. I stroked his messy hair, and his eyes fluttered open. The smile I'd worn the entire morning was still spread over my face.

He looked over the room before back down over me in the bed.

"Well, well, well. My better half has done something right for a change." Fear pulsed through my veins. This wasn't my Patch. "Aren't you going to welcome me back, Nora?"


	10. Chapter 10

_Hey guys! So here's a small update. I've been suffering from a bit of a writer's block but I wanted you to know that I _am_ going to finish the story! So don't be worried, I'm still writing! And I still love feedback! To my reviewers: xXRavenBlackXx, BlackRabbit23, NoShitSherlock87, MicharaHitomi, bookwormgrl101, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, liv408, BlazingWolfFire, Crystal Red Roses, love-30stm & BeCsIpOpS: thank you so much for settling my nerves about the last chapter (my now lower anxiety level particularly thanks you)!!! Hope you like this…Please Review!!!_

CHAPTER 10

The room was silent. I couldn't speak, I couldn't move. All I could hear was the sound of my heart breaking. All I felt was fear rising in my chest.

"Aw, Nora, don't look so depressed. I mean from the looks of things we had a pretty good time last night." A wicked smirk appeared across his face as his hand slid over me.

"_We_ didn't have anything!" I screamed as I jumped from the bed and out of his reach. I made a break for the door. Within half a second a familiar searing pain shot through my ankle, causing me to drop to the floor. The same pain I'd felt with my short-lived broken ankle.

Patch watched on from the bed before sighing and getting up. He tugged on his the faded jeans and walked over to me.

"Need a hand?" he asked as his hand brushed over my arm.

If I'd ignored the threatening undertone in his voice the gesture would've have been sweet. But it wasn't. _It's not him, it's not him, it's not him. _I felt his hands pull me up, one under each arm.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" I screamed. I secretly hoped it was loud enough to attract Rixon's attention but I doubted it.

"Fine," Patch said, dropping me to the floor.

"Ouch," I cried in pain. My entire side was now throbbing uncontrollably from where it had hit the hardwood floor.

"_You _were the one who didn't want to be touched, I was just doing as you asked" he said, a false mask of innocence covering his face. "So," he said looking around the cabin, "I brought here did I?"

I sat without a sound, not wanting to give him any sort of answer. I glared up at him and was greeted by dark eyes. He took one more look around the room and then it clicked.

"Ah, so if we're here, then that means that I left you with Rixon. Tell me, how is Rixon? Drunk, probably." Patch smiled to himself. "I should've thought of it earlier. Of course I would've left you with him." He paused thoughtfully, "doesn't matter though, the point is that we're here now."

He knelt next to me and smiled in a way that made my skin crawl. It was hard to believe how much the effect of his smile had changed. Last night that smile had warmed my heart, this morning it terrified me.

"So now we're finally together, what do want to do?" He asked with mock excitement. I sat, unmoving. "No ideas? That's okay, I've got one you're really going to like." My eyes flittered over to the bed as an indescribable amount of panic overwhelmed me.

"Oh no, not _that _Nora." He said following me eye line to the bed that we'd held each other in last night. "Although if you're up for round two, I'm sure I could oblige." His hand went to touch me again but I scuttled backwards to avoid it.

"I said it before, and I'll say it again: don't touch me." I said in a low voice, annunciating each word.

"Fine." He said as he raised his hands in a surrender pose. "Luckily my idea doesn't need touching," a slight relieve flowed through me. Patch left my side and searched around the bed. On it, under it, around it.

"Wh-what are you doing?" I stammered.

"Ah-ha! Got it!" He raised the phone he'd found underneath his t-shirt. "I just thought I'd give Dabria a ring. She's probably worried about me, I just want to check in, bring her up to speed. Maybe even invite her over." The smirk he'd worn the entire morning widened.

"Please don't!" My mind was screaming, all I could do was beg. "Please Patch, I know you're in there," Patch walked over to me and I thought for a fleeting second that my pleas might actually be working. "Patch, please, Don't do-"

I was cut off by Patch's hand as he held it over my mouth, blocking the words trying to escape from my lips. He flipped open the phone in his hand and dialled. I could hear the small ringing sounds from the phone as Patch waited for Dabria to pick up. The ringing ended and a muffled "Hello," came from the phone.

"Hey, babe. It's me. I've got a surprise for you, I think your gonna love it." He looked into my eyes as he spoke. "How long will it take you to get to my old place near Rix's?"

There was more muffled noise from the phone before Patch spoke again, "forty-five minutes? Perfect." With those last words Patch slammed the phone shut and smiled at me. "I think she's _really_ gonna like her surprise."


	11. Chapter 11

_Hey Guys! So if your reading this then it means you were willing to wait out my writer's block, so a big thankyou is in order…THANKYOU!!! To all my reviewers: Crystal Red Roses, bookwormgrl101, love-30stm, liv408, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, BlazingWolfFire, BlackRabbit23, Chickedy-pea, xXRavenBlackXx, vampiress, Sabaku-no-Torai…You're all awesome, thanks for the feedback!!! Hope you enjoy this, Please Review!!!_

CHAPTER 11

We stayed silent after the phone was snapped shut. Patch stayed kneeling beside me and kept his hand over my mouth. He didn't make a move. Nor did I.

I'm not sure how much time passed while we remained unmoving. It felt like hours. All I could think about was Dabria's impending arrival. She was coming, and I wasn't leaving. And it was the person whom I loved most in the world that was stopping me from leaving. That's what hurt the most.

"Sorry," Patch said as he removed his hand, realizing it was still over my mouth.

"Excuse me?" I turned my head to face him, neither of us moving from the floor. He looked at me, confused. I clarified, "you just made the phone call that is going to result in my death, yet you're 'sorry' for leaving your hand over my mouth?"

He rolled his eyes and turned to get up. "Whatever, _Angel._" He said smugly. I scowled at his back as he walked to the kitchen. He began opening each cupboard, one by one, scavenging for food.

A small crash came from outside the back window and I jumped. Patch's head shot towards the window. From the look in his eyes, I didn't think it was Dabria lurking outside. He held his finger over his lips as he looked at me, trying to keep me from making a noise. He crept towards the window with his finger still over his lips. Whoever was out there wasn't a friend of Patch's…which made them my best chance.

"HELP!" I screamed as loud as I could. "HE-" Patch dived towards me and blocked my speech with his hand again. I just kept screaming through his fingers, hoping it was loud enough to warrant help from the person outside the house.

Apparently it was. There was a loud thud from the cabin door as somebody attempted to knock it down. Patch was torn; I could see it in his eyes. On one hand he wanted to keep me quiet and restrained. On the other, he had to stop the outsider from entering. The door started to budge and Patch dived for it, giving up on restraining me.

It was too late though. Rixon was through the door.

"Nora!" Rixon yelled as his eyes took in the room, before Patch knocked him to the ground. Rixon hit right back though, and Patch was off him within seconds. But Patch didn't give up; he charged straight towards Rixon and collided with him in a fit of punches.

Seeing Rixon and Patch fight was a particularly strange experience. It wasn't the fact that they were friends; it was the fact that they were _so_ alike. Every hit was blocked. No punch was unexpected. It was like watching a choreographed stunt sequence.

Neither of them was getting anywhere, they were too evenly matched. Neither had anything on the other, no one had an advantage…or did they. It hit me, Rixon had the advantage: _me_. I may not have been a black belt, but having another human around who was on your side _had_ to be counted as an advantage.

I tore my eyes from the fight in front of me and searched for something to do. Even though my limited mobility was only an illusion it was still stopping me from getting off the floor, which severely limited the ways in which I could help.

My mind was failing me; I couldn't think anything until my eyes glanced upon the ashtray on the end table next to the couch. The camping light we had used last night was next to it. I scrambled towards the table; glad Patch was too preoccupied to cotton on to what I was doing.

I grabbed the ashtray and without pause pegged it at Patch with as much force as I could muster. In the fleeting half second during which it was flying through the air, panic filled me as I worried that it would hit Rixon instead of Patch. But with what can only be called impeccable timing, Rixon dodged Patch's right hook and thereby caused Patch to receive the full force of the flying ashtray to the side of his head.

The blow stunned Patch, causing him to stagger to the side. Rixon's head whipped around to see who was behind the throw. His eyes caught mine before he resumed pummelling Patch; using the advantage I had given him.

I leant over the table, trying to get a better idea of what was happening. Patch was in bad shape, the ashtray had been heavy and to be honest, I was surprised it hadn't knocked him unconscious. Now with Rixon continuing to beat him, I doubted whether he would live. Instinct overwhelmed me as that thought entered my mind.

"STOP!" I cried. The last thing I wanted was Patch's death, especially if my own hand had aided it. I loved him, regardless of what he did. "GET OFF HIM! LET'S JUST LEAVE!"

Rixon continued to pound Patch's face, ignoring my cries. Patch was now so bloody and bruised his face was barely recognisable. I reached for the lantern on the table and threw it at Rixon's feet. The glass case smashed into a thousand pieces as it hit floor and Rixon looked back towards me.

"H-he's your best friend…please stop." I pleaded. "P-please…I love him." The words seemed to stir Rixon's compassion. Patch was limp in Rixon's hands as Rixon let him drop to the floor. Rixon walked over to me and pulled me up. Putting my arm over his shoulder, he helped me the door. I took a last glimpse back at Patch as I was led outside.

He was sprawled out on the hardwood floor, barely conscious. There was blood coming from his nostrils, his lips, his busted eyebrow. Broken glass surrounded him. A flash of pain went through me as Rixon continued to pull me over the terrain, towards his house. The best I could do for Patch was pray that Dabria loved his evil half as much as I loved his other half. Just pray she would take care of him, like I would if I could.

Rixon interrupted my prayers, "is Dabria coming?"

"Yeah, he called her."

"How long?" He asked, taking my words in stride.

"Forty-five minutes, but that was about half an hour ago."

"Great," Rixon breathed as he lifted me up and into his arms. He sped up as we reached the clearing. Once inside the house dropped me on the couch and called back "stay there," as he disappeared down the hallway. I didn't think that was really necessary as I wasn't able to move, but I didn't bother telling him that.

I sat and waited. I assumed Rixon was grabbing what he could before we hit the road. Clearly we weren't going to be able to return for a long time. The sound of cupboard doors slamming shut came down the hallway.

"Hello," someone spoke from the window behind me. I let out a gasp of shock at the unexpected noise. I spun around in my seat to see who was there. Yet there was no one, the outside was completely clear. Thinking that I might be delusional, I kept my gaze focused on it for a couple of seconds before letting out a breath and turning back around. A scream escaped my lips as I was greeted by pale blond hair and designer clothes.

"_Nora,_ don't be so dramatic. It's just me." Dabria smiled.


	12. Chapter 12

_Hey guys!!! So here's the next instalment. I would've updated sooner but it's been the first week of the school year in Aus so it's been really busy. To the reviewers for the last chapter: AmbaLee, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, BlackRabbit23, BlazingWolfFire, xXRavenBlackXx, bookwormgrl101, small-cub, Sabaku-no-Torai, love-30stm, GuysGirls3 – you certainly know how to flatter a girl & I am loving it! Hope you like this chapter, the next one contains a MAJOR development story wise! Keep reading, Please Review…_

_P.S I have uploaded a playlist onto my profile. It's got some songs that directly relate to scenes in the fic & some that just invoke that 'Patch/Nora forever' kind of mood. Please check it out, tell me what you think & if you know any other good 'Hush, Hush' songs then I'd love to hear about them…_

CHAPTER 12

"Dabria." I scowled.

"Nora." She replied, as if we were opponents facing off against one another. Which in a twisted way, I suppose we were. The competing objects of Patch's desire. Neither willing to let him go, to surrender.

"Nora, you have no idea how long the last two days have felt. Searching high and low, never finding you. It was so…_depressing_." She paused thoughtfully, as she paced up and down the room. "So imagine my surprise when I get the call from Patch, telling me to meet him _here_…"

I could feel my panic rising, the tips of my fingers shaking. Goosebumps coated my entire body. My senses heighten. The sensitivity overwhelmed me. The couch felt as hard as wood, the small line of light streaming through the far window was blinding, the passing scent of cigarette smoke and alcohol was now a pungent odour. And over all this, Dabria continued, her voice deafening.

"Seriously, Nora. _Here?_ You _had_ to know that sooner or later I would look here. The only reason I _didn't_ come sooner was because I thought you wouldn't be idiotic enough to come here, let alone idiotic enough to stay.

"But that's the great thing about you Nora, full of surprises. Always keeping me on my toes. Well…not any longer."

My vision blurred as she walked towards me. _Where was Rixon? _I thought frantically. My thoughts were stopped though as Dabria's hand struck me across the face. The blow stung and I could feel my skin heating up, turning red. Out of instinct I flung my hands over my face. It didn't help. Dabria caught a fistful of my knotted hair in her closed hand and she pulled, hard. The shock didn't have time to register though, as she hurled my head into the wall behind the couch.

"Ahhh!" I cried out. Shock waves of pain travelled through me. My head felt like it had been set on fire, burning from the inside out. She let me go, allowing the pain to surge more freely through me.

"How does feel Nora? Because that's how it felt as Patch slipped through my fingers. That's how it felt as I watched you two become close. That pain you're feeling, I felt it _everyday_ for months!" Her voice wavered as she screeched the words.

Dabria was losing it. In that moment, Dabria may have been my attacker, but for the first time it became clear to me that when you broke it down Dabria's actions were driven by her heartbreak. And maybe a little vengeance. But this sudden insight into Dabria's twisted mind didn't help minimise the pain I felt as she continued her beating.

Her hands gripped my arms by the skin, her nails sinking in. I screamed as they digged deeper, sunk lower. My eyes screwed shut as the pain continued. I couldn't feel anything, hear anything. All I was aware of were Dabria's nails plunging into my skin and the pain that it caused. It was unbearable. I didn't think they could go any further yet they kept going…and going.

Until they weren't there anymore. The indentations that had been created and filled with her blood red nails were now empty. My eyes fluttered open cautiously, wondering what she would do next. But it was no longer Dabria standing over me. Rixon was there, and Dabria was now unconscious at his feet. I peered up at him, my eyes having trouble staying open.

"C'mon," he mouthed as he pulled me off the couch. He wrapped my arm around his shoulders and started to drag me towards the car. Shadows crowded my sight as he did so. I felt queasy, sick. I needed iron. I opened my mouth to tell Rixon this but the words didn't make it. Darkness closed in around me and I let the numbness take hold.

***

"Nora, you there?"

My eyelids sprung open as I heard my name. Rixon was driving us down a steep mountain road covered with thick fog. My mind drifted to thoughts of home. _Home._ I couldn't help but wonder what was happening there, how it looked, the weather. All the small details that you never really care to notice on a day to day basis.

It had only been three days yet in the images my mind conjured everything seemed completely different. I just didn't believe that it could have stayed the same when so many other things had changed. Guilt hit me as I my mind turned to Vee, to mum. They were probably worried sick, beyond sick.

"Nora?" Rixon asked again, looking over from behind the wheel.

"Yeah, I'm awake," I mumbled back, rubbing my eyes.

"Good, for a second there I thought you'd need a hospital or somethin'. You were looking pretty bad."

I thought back to the house, back to what I suffered through. I could only imagine what that had done to my appearance. Pulling down the visor slowly I peered into the scratched mirror.

_Ugggh,_ was the only word that came to mind. I looked like I'd been the victim of a street thug, not a blonde who wore the same dress size as me. The point of impact where I'd been flung into the wall, the left side of my forehead, was purple and cut. Blood that was now dry had dripped from the cut down my face. There was a lot of redness and puffiness on the other side of my face, presumably from where she'd struck me. And the back of my head felt a little tender from she'd pulled me by the hair. The memory of her nails floated back into my mind and I looked down to my arms. On each arm were five tiny crescent shapes, coloured with blood. Trails of dried blood came off some of them, continuing down my arms.

"_Great,"_ I breathed as I looked away from the wounds and out into the fog.

"A few scrapes here and there won't hurt you, trust me I've seen worse." He said, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"And in which bar was that?" I replied lazily, shutting my eyes and leaning back into the seat.

"_Touché_," Rixon answered. He was now hunching over the steering wheel trying to find a something through the fog. Probably a turnoff. "You might not remember, but I gave you your iron."

"Oh, thanks."_ I didn't remember._

Latching on to my silent thought he added, "yeah, you sort of half woke up a couple of times. Most you would do would mumble but luckily you mumbled _'iron'_. I found it in your pocket and you managed to swallow one. It was a bit like you were sleep walking, without the exercise."

"_Right_. Thanks again."

"No probs. And I'm sorry that I wasn't there sooner, I was just trying get stuff into the car out back. I honestly didn't think she'd be there, I thought we had a few more minutes."

"That's Dabria, _full of surprises,_" I said sarcastically. I looked over and saw a pained looked on his face and continued, "but hey, it's okay. The point is I survived. You got there in time. Both with Patch and Dabria. Thank you."

Rixon let out a little smile, he seemed quietly proud to be the reason I was alive.

"But Rixon…"

"Yeah?"

"Next time there is a psychopath heading our way let's just leave. _Not pack_."

"You got it," he smiled


	13. Chapter 13

_Hey guys! I'm so sorry that I haven't been updating but school's been crazy. For future reference, I'll probably be updating about once every fortnight. To my reviewers: Emm10, GuysGirls3, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, FAN, bookwormgrl101, BlazingWolfFire, xXRavenBlackXx, Sabuku-no-Torai, love-30stm, Lillyymayy-x and iMakesPaxtch: When my maths teacher asks me tomorrow why I didn't do the homework I will read out your usernames and explain that I simply had to post because of all of your kind words! Hope you enjoy, Please Review!!!_

_The big plot development comes in like the last line by the way_

CHAPTER 13

My eyes flickered as I came back into the real world. I hadn't really been asleep, just resting. I rubbed my eyes, giving them a second to adjust to the rays of amber that were streaming through the windshield. The car was pulled up in the parking lot of seedy looking motel. For a second my thoughts flashed back to when Patch and I had been forced to take a room in a place like this.

That night seemed so long ago. Hell, this morning seemed forever ago. All my memories were blurring, their order becoming indistinct. In my mind, things were either happening right now, or had happened ages ago.

My eyes drifted over to the right and I saw that the driver's seat was empty. I closed my eyes hoping Rixon would be back soon. My body was aching and I felt horrible. I really needed to lie down and the cramped passenger seat just wasn't working.

As if he had heard my mental call Rixon appeared, walking towards the car. He held something tiny and grimy in his hand. I wound down the window and he leant through.

"It's room eighteen, upstairs," Rixon told me as he put the single grubby looking key into my palm. "Go and open up. I'll get the stuff out."

"Fine," I replied with nonchalance. I probably should've asked where we were but I was so exhausted-both physically and mentally-that I no longer cared where we were.

As I got out of the car I stumbled a little, my legs numb from being confined for however long we'd been driving. My feet dragged slowly across the pavement towards the cement stairs at the end of the building. Climbing those stairs felt like climbing Everest. By the time I reached the top I was even more exhausted than I'd been before, which I hadn't thought possible. The room was about five steps from the landing and I staggered towards the door. I could only imagine what I would have looked like to a stranger. My guess was drunk or worse. I closed my eyes and couldn't repress the thought, the silent prayer: _This isn't my life, I'll wake up soon. _

Rixon's voice solidified my dismal reality.

_"Geez,_ little slow aren't we? Didn't have our weeties, huh?" he joked as his fingers gently pried the room key from my closed hand.

"Need. To. Lie. Down." I mumbled. Sure enough my body backed up this statement and I slumped forward into Rixon. He caught me with one hand as his other swung the door open. Pulling me through the door with one hand, he carried in some of the stuff with the other. He dropped me over the bed before going to get the other stuff he'd left outside the door.

I let out a long breath of relief as I felt the mattress swell around my limp body. I sank further down into its lumped cushioning, not bothered to readjust myself. Rixon's movements became less noticeable as sleep took hold of me.

***

I woke up feeling better, yet the mirror on the other side of the room showed that I still looked just as bad. I looked to the small window, which now had no light coming through it. It was night, or maybe even early morning.

The sound of running water was coming from the bathroom so I guessed that Rixon was grabbing a shower. This reminded me of my own hygiene needs and I discreetly smelt my shirt, afraid that somehow somebody could be watching. I _definitely_ needed a shower. I was surprised Rixon had survived the car trip with me.

I stood up and walked the entire step and a half to Rixon's mattress, hoping he had grabbed deodorant. _No such luck._ At least he had been decent enough to get us two queens though. I looked more closely at the mound of stuff on Rixon's queen. It was everything he'd grabbed from the house before he'd come to my rescue.

As my eyes combed over the pile I couldn't help but feel a little resentment towards it. For every thing I saw, I couldn't help but think _'my head was slammed into a wall because of you'._ I mean, now that I looked at them closely, they weren't even that important. Just books and crumpled letters. Not even essential runaway stuff like food. Although as I picked up a book from the pile a can of Guinness rolled out from under it. I suppose that Rixon thought that_ that_ counted as a form of sustenance.

I flipped the maroon bound book I now held in my hand on it's side and read the spine; or at least tried to. The title was in a different language. It looked like Latin but I couldn't be sure. My Latin stretched about as far as the Hogwarts motto. I picked up a second book, hoping to find the title in English. _I didn't._ In fact, on closer examination I found that every single book was written in a foreign language.

The water in the bathroom stopped and I called out to Rixon. "Hey, I'm up…"

"Good to know," he called back. I waited silently for him to get dressed, growing more and more curious by the second about the "essentials" Rixon had packed.

"Rixon," I called, hoping it would cause him to hurry.

"What?" he said as he swung the door open. Rixon stood there in his jeans with damp hair while pulling a navy shirt over his head.

"Done?" I asked.

_"Done," _he replied as he fixed his crumpled shirt. "Why?" He asked looking up from the shirt, suspicion colouring his voice.

"Why did you risk my head being pummelled for the sake of books that aren't even written in English?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at him.

He let out a sigh and for a second I saw regret flash in his eyes. "I told you Nora, I'm sorry. I would have never risked it on purpose, I didn't know that she was there. I thought we had time-"

"I accept that, alright. I know you wouldn't have done it on purpose. But what is all this crap?" I said, gesturing over the pile.

"It's how we're gonna get our boy back."


	14. Chapter 14

_Hey guys! So here's the next instalment! Hope it's everything you wanted it to be! To my reviewers: liv408, bookwormgrl101, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, PoSeUr911, Sabaku-no-Torai, xXRavenBlackXx, KatieGallagherDare, dublin angel, BlazingWolfFire, CloudedMindx, Dorothy Suzanne09, small-cub, Just a fan…, love-30stm and Twighlightangel61090 – I had sooo much fun writing this chapter and it's all thanks to you guys! Hope you likey…PLEASE REVIEW!!!_

CHAPTER 14

"This is useless! There is nothing here!" I cried in frustration. Rixon and I had been hauled up in the same shabby motel room for the past four days. All we had done other than eat and sleep was go through the dusty pile of battered books that Rixon had brought with him. We hadn't found _anything _and I felt so useless just sitting here, reading over the same three books (only three were in English) while Patch was out there, alone. _Healing, _I hoped.

Rixon sighed at my outburst, "Nora, sooner or later we _will_ find something. We just need to-"

"If you say_ focus_ one more time I will peg this book at your head," I glared at him, placing emphasis on every word.

"Alright, alright. I saw what happened to Patch. I'll be good," he smiled. "But _you _need to realise that what Dabria did hasn't been done for centuries, I'd never even heard of it. We aren't gonna find the fix on the first read."

I took a breath to calm myself and tried to pull my raging thoughts together into some form of comprehendible speech. "I realise that. But the thing is that this isn't my first reading, it's my _nineteenth. _I swear on my life that there is NOTHING in these books, they don't even mention angels using magic, like _ever_!"

"Well we do. I mean not recently but in the past we used to use it all the time. Not me personally-it was before my time, it would have even been before Dabria's time," Rixon replied without glancing up from the page his eyes were combing over.

"Dabria's older than you?" I asked; feeling surprised for some reason. Of course she, Patch and Rixon all appeared to be the same age but it was only due to the fact that angels didn't age past a certain point. I'd never considered that they were actually different ages.

"Yeah, that's why she can knock me and Patch around."

"_Hmm…"_ I nodded. Leaving the air free of noise for a moment before breaking the silence, "so you think we should just keep looking…"

"I don't know. Yeah, maybe," Rixon paused. Over the past few days I'd learnt that Rixon really didn't like having to make decisions for us both. But the fact was that I knew nothing about angels except that I was in love with one and so therefore it fell to Rixon to guide us in our attempt to save Patch.

"Well is there any other way that we can find out more…or what to do?" I asked, making it up as I went along.

"It's not a school assignment Nora, you can't just go to the library."

I didn't even bother acknowledging the insult. "What about a person…or an angel…or whatever, that we can talk to?"

There was silence. I thought that Rixon hadn't heard my suggestion but suddenly he stood up, books crashing to the floor after losing their place on his lap. "We're going. Get your stuff."

His words completely threw me off. "Can you sense Dabria or something? Why are we leaving? Where are we going?" I asked as he started piling things into the worn duffle bag he'd brought.

"Hey, if you wanna stay, be my guest but you actually gave me an idea. _Therefore_ we are going…" he looked up to see me standing on the spot, "NOW, move it."

***

We had been driving past the same type of surroundings for an hour. Rixon was speeding, I was feeling anxious and the car was cracking under the pressure.

"So who are we going to see?" I said over the creaks of the engine and the oldies rock station that was playing.

"No one specific. I thought we'd try a place that sooner or later an angel will show up at, a fallen one at least."

"And where would that be?" I asked cautiously. _Please let it not be a bar,_ I added silently.

"It's not a bar," Rixon answered through a grin. "It's where we land." I had no idea what he meant. Rixon sensed my confusion and continued. "When angels fall…we land."

"So wait, you're saying that fallen angels _literally_ fall? Like actually hit the ground?"

"Yeah…I thought that it was pretty self explanatory." He said as if he'd never thought of it any other way.

"And you all land in the_ same_ place?" I asked, seeking clarification.

"_Yeah,_" Rixon replied, dragging out the word.

"That's crazy. I mean what if someone falls on top of you after you've landed?" After the words left my lips I realised how silly they sounded yet it was the first thought that had come to mind.

"Nora, falling isn't an easy thing. They don't kick you out of heaven over little things. They tend to believe in something called '_forgiveness_' up there."

"About that, why would they kick you out at all if they believe in forgiveness? …Forget it, back to this place thing, where is it?"

"About an hour from the east side of Portland. And we're still a couple of hours from Portland so I guess we'll be a bit before dusk."

"_Great._" I said sarcastically as I turned the radio up and settled in for the drive.

***

"Is_ this _it?" I asked following Rixon's lead and getting out of the car.

"Why? Not what you expected?" Rixon teased.

"No, I mean…I'm not sure. To be honest I don't know what I was expecting. But an open field wasn't it."

"Well this is it, I'm sorry to say." There was a moment where we just stood there letting the quiet air roll over us.

"What do we do now?" I asked.

"We wait," he said, sitting himself down on the car bonnet. "Sooner or later someone will hit the ground," he patted the empty space next to him.

"That's a comforting thought." I climbed on and sat motionlessly, believing that if I was still then the angels would fall faster. This wasn't the case. Minutes turned into hours as we waited. Finally, from the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of something white about twenty metres from the car standing on the edge of the field. As far as I could tell it was male. Its skin was so pale it almost looked translucent in the twilight. I elbowed Rixon, who obviously hadn't noticed the company yet.

"Bingo," he said quietly enthusiastic, starting to get off the bonnet until all of a sudden he froze. "Wait…" He said in a way that let me know that something was definitely up, "that thing didn't fall."

_P.S It's not Edward Cullen_


	15. Chapter 15

_Hey! So here is a little snippet just to let you know that I'm still here and am still planning on finishing the fic, I've just been really busy with school assignments. Ironically enough, one of the assignments is to write a piece of Dracula fan fiction. But anyway, here is the EXTREMELY rushed next chapter. To my reviewers for chapter 14: twighlightangel61090, AnUnbrokenHorse aka RushtonElf, GuysGirls3,__bookwormgrl101, hannah, liv408, Meagan, xXRavenBlackXx, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, PoSeUr911, BlackRabbit23, small-cub, BlazingWolfFire, Blood And Fangs27, FallenForTheDraco,__CloudedMindx, XxJinxieUnluckyxX, PriyaSandhu, Chickedy-pea, Sparrow's Lassie – Thank you SOOO MUCH!!! I hope this tides you over!!! Please review…_

CHAPTER 15

"What do you mean?" My breathing sped up. "What is it?" I whispered in panic. There was a moment of silence where nothing seemed to move or make a sound for miles. I elbowed Rixon in the ribs, forcing an answer to my desperate question.

"_I don't know…_ But it didn't fall." The lone figure was walking towards us now; it's pale skin illuminating the azure air around it. The squelch of its steps upon the damp grass grew louder and louder as it came nearer.

"Nora. Get. Into. The. Car." He said slowly, annunciating every syllable.

I lifted my feet to move. But nothing happened. Again I went to move my feet. Again nothing. It was as if the signal from my brain to my body had been cut. Something was stopping me from moving. But it wasn't fear that was causing my sudden paralysis. It was something else, I could feel it. An outside force. Washing over me, preventing me from crossing the two metres of grass to the car door. "_I can't_," I breathed, fear welling up in my throat.

"I know," Rixon replied. I looked up at him, confused by his words. Then I realised, he was trying to move too. Both face and fists were screwed up in exertion. His face was a mask and concentration and anger. His body began to tremble under the effort. "_Bugger it_," he spat under his breath, his face and fists suddenly relaxing in surrender.

The figure was closer now. About 6"1' with white hair cascading down over it's thin shoulders. The air around us had turned dark, the moon and its stars were the only source of illumination for miles causing the whole scene to become even creepier. The figure strode forward towards us taking long and even strides. Darkness hung over its face, blocking its identity from view.

"_Ah Rixon_. Always scrambling after Patch, aren't we?" The bodiless voice teased. The voice was male, yet soft. I couldn't decide whether the fact that he knew Rixon comforted me or terrified me. He came to an abrupt holt about two metrees from us. "Always a sidekick, never a hero."

Before I had time to question the words Rixon shot back, "What the hell are you doing here Carnelian?"

"_Geez_ Rix, don't have to be like that. I just got here. And I haven't even met little Nora yet. And I have so been longing to meet her…"

Even in the moonlight I could see the rage and protectiveness spreading across Rixon's face, "Nora, Carnelian. Carnelian, Nora. _Satisfied_?" Rixon replied through gritted teeth.

"_No._" The figure said curtly before stepping forward, allowing light to cross his face for the first time. The glow of the stars sunk into the crevices of his face, showing just how angular the features upon it were. The thin red lips of the mouth opened into a slight smile, "Nora, I am Carnelian. Messenger of the angels. I have been wishing to meet you for quite some time." The emphasis he placed on the last sentence sent waves of anxiety through me.

"_Idiot_. You're a messenger angel, not 'messenger of the angels'." Rixon countered, causing the smirk on Carnelian's face to slip.

Something inside my head clicked, "messenger angel? So you have something to tell us? …About Patch right?" I prayed he would tell me that God had decided to strike Dabria down with a lightening bolt. But judging by the look on his face, I doubted that was it.

"Yes. It is about Patch-"

"So you finally decided to get off your asses and do something up there did you?" Rixon interrupted.

"Rixon, _shut up._" I looked back to Carnelian, my eyes locked on his. "What about Patch?"

Carnelian continued, "I'm afraid it's not going to be what you want to hear."

"I can take it. Just say it!"

"Alright. Well, the high angels are aware of your situation, aware of what Dabria has done. And they've decided on how best to approach the matter."

"_Approach the matter_?" I stuttered.

"Yes. They have decided to remove the problem altogether."

"So you're going to take Dabria down?" I said, hope ringing through my voice.

"Yes… And Patch."

_P.S I have created the very interestingly titled "Hush, Hush Fans" forum. Basically it's devoted to general Hush, Hush talk & any other books that Hush, Hush readers might enjoy while they're waiting for Crescendo. (BTW Becca has announced via facebook all edits for Crescendo are done! Yay!) So head on over to the forum after reviewing to say who you would love to see cast in Hush, Hush as a movie, what you want to happen in Crescendo or even post a topic… _


	16. Chapter 16

Hey everyone! Hope you're having a good Easter holidays! Here's the next chapter. Don't worry, it's longer than the last! To my absolutely FAB-U-LOUS reviewers: Sparrow's Lassie, xxkissesandcuddlesxx, twighlightangel61090, bookwormgrl101, love-30stm, xXRavenBlackXx, XxJinxieUnluckyxX, Blood And Fangs27, BlazingWolfFire, FallenForTheDraco, xoxlil-devilxox, small-cub, JadeeXbooks, Blossoming-Star-At-Heaven, laddie girl, deator11, Becccaxx, lil'miss'reader, bookworms-are-AWESOME, Obervant, Sihlouette, Jelly Babes 101: thank you for all your feedback! Loved it all! The next chapter will hopefully be up sooner than this one (I know I took a while with this one). Hope you enjoy it…Please Review!

CHAPTER 16

"Excuse Me?"

"I said: 'we are going to remove the problem.'" Carnelian answered; sounding almost pleased at having to repeat it.

"Yeah, I get that part," I said through a sigh of exasperation. I could feel the frustration and anger that had been locked within me bubbling to the surface, threatening to erupt. "What I don't get is why you view the problem as two people. There's only one person-slash-monster causing it and I think that you should just 'remove' her!"

Carnelian paid no attention to the rage I was exhibiting. He simply let out a cold smile, the kind of smile you see on serial killers in those cop shows. "Ah, so you don't like our definition of the problem. We," he pointed to the sky, "thought you wouldn't." Glee flowed freely through his words.

"Of course I don't!"

"Then perhaps we should re-evaluate."

"Well, yeah idiot!"

Malice flashed in Carnelian's eyes. Rixon tensed and shifted his body in front of me. I was regretting calling Carnelian an idiot, even though it was the most tame word I could use to describe what he was. But as fast as it had appeared, it disappeared and Carnelian's all too calm exterior returned.

"Yes, re-evaluate, re-define. If you think that's best Nora." Sarcasm was now hovering over his words. "But re-evaluating might mean including you as part of the problem. The problem to be removed." I gulped.

"Pfft. Carnelian stop trying to scare her," Rixon said before turning to me. "Nora, don't worry. Angels can't 'remove' humans. It's forbidden," he turned back to face Carnelian, "and I doubt little Carnelian would want to tarnish his perfect record."

"Not all of us want to kiss the ground Rixon."

"Well not all of-"

"Rixon don't," I pleaded. I looked to Carnelian, "Why are you going to take out Patch?"

Without breaking his death stare to Rixon he answered, "he causes trouble. We don't like trouble, simple as that."

"Excuse me but there has been absolutely no trouble on Patch's end for the last six months. Dabria is causing the problem. It's not his fault." I argued.

"Aw, when bad things happen to 'good' angels. Shame." Carnelian said. He couldn't have sounded more detached if he tried.

Rixon let out a huff of irritation, "look messenger boy, we're done talking." My hair whipped around as I spun to face Rixon, confused. He continued, "Nora and I are waiting here and you are going to do what you do best, deliver a message for us."

"No I'm-" Carnelian begun.

"Yeah, you are. Here's what you're going to tell them: Go after Dabria. Leave Patch alone. Nora & I will fix Patch up, the angels don't have to scramble about trying to find a cure. Because we all know that's the real reason Patch is wearing a bullseye. The big wings upstairs don't know how to reverse the spell, they only know how to do it."

"That is not-"

"Quiet Carnelian. You know it's the truth. And I know that you can give them the message," the angel stood there, speechless. "Well get going," Rixon added, making a shooing gesture.

With one more glare of hate, Carnelian was gone. He just seemed to evaporate, fade into the night air.

"Is he gone?" I whispered to Rixon, his disappearance was so sudden that I wasn't sure.

"Yeah," Rixon whispered back, mocking me. He started towards the car and I followed.

When we were both in and the doors were closed I turned to him, "are they going to kill Patch?"

Rixon paused before answering. "They wouldn't have bothered sending the idiot down if they'd already killed him. So chances are that he's still alive and that Carnelian will take the message back, even though he's a complete jackass."

"What will they say?"

"No idea…" He trailed off, thoughts full of possibilities filling his distant eyes.

"But there's a chance they'll say yes, right? That they'll just go after Dabria?" I asked, uncertainty filling my words.

"Yeah, there's always a chance," Rixon answered.

"Okay…a chance….I work with a chance," I let out a breath I hadn't known that I'd been holding. Rixon was still thinking beside me, concentration still masked his face. I interrupted his thoughts, "you were good back there, you know. I mean Patch wouldn't have a chance if it weren't for you."

"Nah, I wanted to piss off Carnelian." Rixon replied, brushing off the compliment.

"Sure," I said laughing at his words. As my quiet laugh finished a silence fell in the air between us. It was a comfortable quiet, a silence caused by the relief of our small victory. Disaster might be coming soon but for now Rixon had averted it, at least for the night.

"That's all?" Rixon's yelling woke me and I sprung up from my awkward car-sleeping position. My neck let out a loud crack and I let out a cry of pain before turning my sleep encrusted eyes to the field in which Rixon and Carnelian were now having a screaming match.

I rubbed my eyes and focused back on the field, now lit up by the dawn sun. Rixon was now storming back towards the car, Carnelian following a few footsteps behind, calling out things that I couldn't distinguish in my disorientated state. Rixon wrenched open the car door with such force that I thought it would permanently detach itself from the car. He threw himself in, slammed the door and wound down the window with lightning speed, yelling profanities at Carnelian before starting the engine.

Carnelian spotted me now awake. His lips curled into a smile that chilled me to the bone. 'If you need a new 'guardian' Nora, I'm always willing." His metallic voice flowed straight through my mind. I let out a shiver of pure repulsion as Rixon hit the gas.

The car was now hurling forward down the empty morning road. "What happened?" I Rixon asked cautiously, not wanting to distract him from the road. "What did they say?"

"72 hours," he grunted angrily.

"72 hours? 72 hours for what?" I asked softly, not wanting to fire him up anymore than he already was.

"72 hours to find Patch. 72 hours to find a cure. 72 hours to put them together." His words came out in broken fragments through his rage.

"So three days?"

"Yep. Three bloody days. That's all they gave us to find a cure that the whole of heaven can't. A cure, which for all we know, doesn't even exist."

I took in a breath and tried to focus on what Rixon had said. Only 3 days, I could almost feel the bubble of hope that had been in me deflating. It seemed impossible. No, nothing's impossible, I told myself. Not when it concerns Patch it isn't.

Rixon was still fuming. "It's better than nothing," I said, trying to muster up all the positive energy I could. It definitely wasn't contagious. "Where are we going?"

"Where do you think? We're going get Patch." Rixon said, swinging the car around a sharp corner, the tires screeching under the pressure.

"We don't even know where he is or who he is for that matter."

"I'll find him." Rixon said, swerving the car around a right turn.

"What are we gonna do when we find him? We don't have a cure, there's no guarantee that he's himself, he could be with Dabria!" I said trying to arouse some sort of logic in Rixon.

"I know. I'm counting on it."


	17. Chapter 17

Hey everybody! New chapter time! To the most awesome reviewers in the history of fanfiction: Sihlouette, twighlightangel61090, Jelly Babes 101, bookwormgrl101, .225, Blood And Fangs27, Sparrow's Lassie, XxJinxieUnluckyxX, BlackRabbit23, love-30stm, malia81167, just me 33333, xXxCrAzY4VaMpIrEsxXx, JadeeXbooks, BlazingWolfFire, xXcrazyemoXx, fallinginlovewithanangel, Ghost In The Snow, rosalynn23, Winged Angel Girl, Sabira Wolf, Kiana and Patch, Anaik, Turdle, Elena3Patch!!, GirlGoneMad.x – all your praise and offering of bribes for updating is awesome!!! I love every single piece of feedback you give and I do think about when I'm writing, so thank you all again! Hope you like the chapter, please review!!!

CHAPTER 17

"Pull in here," I said to Rixon, pointing to the small service station on the side of the desolate stretch we'd been travelling along for an hour.

"Do you think they'll have one?" Rixon asked as the car went over the bumps of the driveway.

"The better question is: will it work?" I replied. The engine deadened and we both got out of the car, swinging our doors wide open in the empty row of car spaces.

As we entered the shabby red building that was the service shop a bell rung above the door. The clerk called out to us from behind a newspaper.

"What do you need?"

I let out a sigh and a smile. For a second I had truly believed it was going to be empty. Glad that someone was going to help us, even if was from behind a newspaper, I called back, "a payphone…please." I held an anxious breath as we reached the counter.

"Hmm, payphone's for customers only," he said folding his newspaper, revealing the cracked skin of a mechanic. "You want to use it, you make a purchase." The way he said this made me think he'd missed his calling as a high school teacher. Rixon dropped a lollipop and a quarter on the counter.

"Opposite wall, press the buttons down hard." The man said taking the quarter with a look of disappointment.

"Thankyou," I said, flashing him a smile in case it didn't work and we had ask for the staff phone. Rixon too smiled, and snatched up the lollipop, although his smile was saying something more along the lines of 'fat chance you were gonna get more than a quarter out of me'.

The phone was ancient and for a second I thought if we touched it, it would break. Rixon took a deep breath before picking up the receiver. He was about to dial when I stopped him.

"No, I should talk. Otherwise they'll think it's just you coming." Rixon considered this for a moment before nodding and passing the receiver to me. I could feel the dust on it as my hands wrapped around it. My fingers gave a slight twitch as I dialled the familiar number. I pressed each key down as hard as I could, scared it wouldn't work unless I put my whole weight behind each key.

It started ringing as soon as I'd dialled the last nine of Patch's number. I bit my lip with anticipation. I was scared. It could have been anyone picking up the other end. Dabria, Bad Patch, Good Patch. But at the same time I was anxious, but in a good way. This would be the first time I was going to hear Patch's voice in days. The ringing stopped and I took in a deep breath.

"Yes," a cold voice came through the speaker. It seemed so loud that I unintentionally jumped.

"Nora….I mean, it's Nora." I corrected myself. If I had felt nervous before Patch had picked up, it was nothing to the way I felt now.

"Nora," the voice spoke again, dragging out my name. "To what do I owe this honour?"

There was silence while he waited for me to answer. I knew what to say, or rather what I was meant to say. But I just couldn't. Something was stopping me. The words just wouldn't come. I wanted him to speak again, to say something. But he didn't. I waited. I knew he was still there, there was nothing that would've made him put the phone down. He wanted to find me, to kill me. I knew this, but I waited for his voice again. I could hear him breaths into the phone. I wanted to know where he was taking those breaths, who else was hearing them. I wanted to know if they were coming out of busted lips, I wanted to know if it was hurting his ribs to inhale them. I wanted to know so much. In that moment I realised how much I'd been missing him. Yet nothing could bring the words to my lips, not even the 72 hour deadline hanging over our heads.

I felt the phone being taken out of my hands. I turned around and Patch was there. He smiled. So did I.

"Now," Patch said. I looked around for what he was talking about. There was nothing. Rixon was gone, the store, the mechanic. The only thing around us was black.

"Patch?" I asked. The word just emerged when Dabria collided with me.

"Nora!" Rixon said, clicking his fingers in front of my face. Patch and Dabria disappeared from my vision.

"What?" I asked glancing around at the wallpapered walls and the pea green couch to my side.

"Geez, you totally zoned out…. You sure you're fine to do this?" Rixon asked, looking concerned.

I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again just to make sure I really was back. "Yep, 72 hours. Right? I don't have a choice. It's be fine or lose Patch."

Rixon nodded. I got up and walked around the dim room. Rixon was marking the walls with something translucent. The way he was holding the stem from which it was flowing made me think there was something special about it. He'd explained it all to me in the car on the way here but I didn't understand it for the life of me.

"What is that again? And why are you covering the walls of your own house with it?" I asked.

A soft smile came over his lips, "I had a feeling you weren't really listening in the car." It was only a small smile, but it was the first smile I'd seen since we'd been given our 72-hour deadline. "It's wax from a hallowed candle. And trust me, nothing I put on these walls could possibly make them any uglier." Rixon continued, as if he was talking about something as common as paint.

"And what's it meant to do?"

"Long story short, its just going to help us tonight." Rixon said finishing a final swirl. A droplet of wax dripped onto his hand but he showed no sign of pain.

"So tonight?" I asked, hoping he would explain it again in a way that I could understand.

"Yes?" He asked as he put the stem down, checking his handiwork.

"This thing that we're doing… I mean, I don't understand it all, but it should work, right? You think it's going to work…right?"

"Well I was sure enough to call them here wasn't I?" He spotted the uncertainty that was splayed across my face. "Look Nora, tonight's going to be intense… And if you want to stay out of it, that's cool. I can do it."

"No, I want to be a part of it." I shot back, my words a little too loud and fast.

Rixon let out a breath, "good, because I was lying. There's no way in hell I could do this alone."

"That's why I'm here, I've got your back." I replied. I took a deep breath and summoned all the concentration and focus I could, "so one more time, the plan is?"


	18. Chapter 18

_Hey people! Long time no update (don't yell at me)! Here's the next tid-bit of the story, I hope you like it! It's basically setting up what is coming in the next two or so chapters. To the most patient (I use that term loosely for a few of you =P), awesome reviewers out there: bookwormgrl101, Blood And Fangs27, GirlGoneMad.x (double =P), xxkissesandcuddlesxx, BlazingWolfFire, OhPatchCipriano. (like the new name!)__**, **__Sparrow's Lassie, Jelly Babes 101, XxJinxieUnluckyxX__**, **__love-30stm, deator11, Winged Angel Girl, SeekerMutt I-950, xXcrazyemoXx, vampireloverxx, lonelygirl101, PurpleSmiley22: THANK YOU! Hope you like this…Please review! _

CHAPTER 18

"So I'll take Dabria, you take Patch."

"Are you sure?"

"It can't be any other way."

I looked to Rixon, hoping some of his strength would filter through the charged air into me. His face was a mask of controlled calm, composure rolled off him in waves. He was everything I wasn't. As it turns out, Nora Grey and epic showdowns don't go hand in hand.

"How long?" I said tugging at the sleeve of my sweatshirt.

"The clock says its…" Rixon squinted towards the clock on the far side of the room. The flickers of the candles' flames finally caught the clock and it momentarily lit up. "…10.45pm, so they should be here by now."

I pulled at my sleeve with greater force. Anxiety was taking over. "Do you think something happened?" Panic filled my words.

"Nora, a car accident is the least of our worries. Knowing them, they probably just want to make an entrance," Rixon replied, rolling his eyes as if "making an entrance" before a life and death fight was the most immature thing on the planet.

"Do you think that they know what we're trying to do? That they're trying to stuff up the timing?"

"Nora, we hardly know what we're doing. I know that Dabria's an evil mastermind and all but I doubt she'll be able to predict exactly what we're doing. That's what happens when you put every single idea you've got into the master plan."

I noise came from outside the window and I jumped. But upon peering out a crack in the blinds as stealthily as I could manage I realised that I was going slightly crazy. The night was black and my angel wasn't there.

"Damn, it's not them," I said, letting my breathing return to somewhere in the region of normal.

Rixon continued checking over the room. I don't think he'd expected the noise, if there had even been a noise at all, to be them. The way he was moving though, the look that covered his face, nagged at me. Something told me Rixon was holding out on details, crucial details. Something in the pit of my stomach gave me the sinking feeling that he knew a lot more about this then I did, and not just in the sense that he actually understood angel magic unlike me who'd just nodded when he'd attempted an explanation. I wanted to ask him what he was thinking, if he truly was keeping anything from me but I knew that if there was one thing Rixon deserved, it was my trust.

My faith in that statement didn't have time to waver as a second later his shoulders stiffened and his fingers curled around the steel pipe he'd found lying outside earlier in the day. He could sense them, even if I couldn't yet. They were here.

"Hide," Rixon mouthed towards me. I could barely make out the shape his lips had formed in the darkness but I already knew what I had to do. My feet moved slowly, silently, taking me down the hallway. The slightest creak could be catastrophic. I went to slip into the last bedroom, pausing at the doorframe to give last look towards Rixon. The candles that surrounded him issued a subtle glow, a glow that seemed to seep into Rixon. He wasn't looking at me. He was focused on the door and I don't think there was a thing in this world that could've pulled that focus. I feet crossed fully into the room, leaving the sight of Rixon behind as I concealed myself in the shadows.

The next few minutes were all hinging on Dabria and Patch. If they did exactly as we expected them to do and wanted them to do then Rixon & I might have a fighting chance of regaining our normal lives, as well as Patch's. But predictability wasn't a word Patch knew to well so I hoped it was Dabria heading the operation. At least there was method to her madness, most of the time.

A crunch sounded as a small branch broke outside under the pressure of someone's foot. Yes, they were near. My breathing sped, knots formed in my throat. It was as if rigor mortis had set it, there was not a muscle I had the power to move in my entire body.

Slaps of sneakers on the doorsteps reached my ears and a second later a sharp creak sounded as the door was swung open.

"Sorry we're late...traffic." Dabria's words were cold, completely unexpected and were weighed down with malice. Silence ensued and I imagined that there was a lot of staring down going on in the front room. My eyes yearned to see what was going on in the front room but I couldn't risk being spotted too early, this all had to play out a certain way.

"You should be thankful, that traffic was prolonging what little time you have left," Rixon replied in the same cruel tone.

"Where's Nora?" Obviously Dabria was tired of the fooling around.

"Around…" Rixon replied carefully. Dabria's reaction to this statement would either realise or destroy our plans.

"Go find her." I let out an inaudible gasp, those three words were all we needed. For her to send Patch to find me. I don't think I have ever felt more unanimously relieved and scared at a single three syllables in my entire life.

The floorboards trembled beneath my feet as Patch's footsteps came down the hallway. I felt him pause at the first doorway, checking if I had stowed myself away in there. Dabria and Rixon's words rung out from the first room, it was getting pretty heated in there. I hoped that Patch wouldn't turn back to help Dabria, the whole point of having him come to get me was to draw him away from Dabria or rather to avoid Rixon feeling the full brunt of an angel double team.

I forced myself to push focus back to Patch's footsteps. He was still in the first bedroom as far as I could tell. All I needed to hear was him emerge into the hallway. Sure enough, a split second later his light steps were crossing from the door of the first room to the second. It was now or never. I flung myself from the doorframe of the room I'd been concealing myself in and leapt towards the backdoor in the kitchen, which the hallway opened into.

I knew I'd gotten everyone's attention. My steps hadn't been soft and I was almost positive they could actually hear the adrenaline pumping through my veins. But that didn't stop me. My job wasn't to stop. My job was to run… and to take Patch with me.


	19. Chapter 19

Hey Guys! New chapter time! This chapter has most DEFINITELY been the hardest to write so far. Usually I write a chapter in one sitting or on the rare occasion two but this chapter has taken about seven (long ones at that!). To my absolutely gorgeous reviewers: Jelly Babes 101, Blood And Fangs27, Sabira Wolf, BloodyNessyZabini, DamonSalvatore'sFutureWife x, bookwormgrl101, Featherbrained, ronnie00, xXcrazyemoXx, XxJinxieUnluckyxX, GirlGoneMad.x, love-30stm, FallenForTheDraco, alexxxolax3, '94, twighlightangel61090, daisykisses, Teehee Tummytums, JodieSamantha, XoxD-M-NL-V-RxoX & etrainx3 – you are the reason I persevered and kept writing so MAJOR thanks to you all! Hope you enjoy this…please review!

**CHAPTER 19**

Run. Run. It was all I could think.

My feet flew underneath me, never seeming to actually touch the ground. Ghost trails ran beside me as tree after tree flashed by my eyes. Leaves crunched and crinkled beneath my heavy footsteps. Branches reached out in the night air, scratching at my face and arms, the cuts stinging in the chill.

There was no plan to this. No strategy. The only thing Rixon had told me to do was run, run like hell from the angel I loved.

I couldn't see that angel, I couldn't hear him, but I could sense him. I felt him in every wisp of air that swept across my face. I could taste him in every breath I took. He was near. His footsteps were probably echoing mine. Yet I knew that soon they wouldn't be. I knew this because I could feel scarlet creeping across my face, could hear my legs protesting with every step.

I needed to stop, to get air into my parched lungs. I needed to-

"Ahhh!" I let out a gasp of pain as the ground slammed into me. The damp floor of the forest wasn't the only thing that had slammed into me.

"Nice try," Patch whispered into my ear. His hard muscles dug into the soft flesh of my back and twigs off the ground dug into my stomach. His legs locked around my sides, holding me in place. I struggled under him as his weight pushed me down, drowning me in the dirt. I waved my arms around weakly. They were my only limbs that weren't trapped beneath Patch. I grasped at sticks, stones, whatever I could and then preceded to lob them in what I thought was the direction of Patch's head, 'thought' being the key word.

'Patch, get off me!' The words boomed in my mind and I could only hope Patch had been "listening". The weight above me remained still and I mentally shouted at him again 'PATCHH!'

"I'll let you up if you promise not to run…though I do like to chase you." he spoke, his cocky tone slightly wavering with every sudden movement I made underneath him, almost as if pinning me down was a challenge. I swallowed the little bit of pride that that thought gave me and spoke cerebrally to Patch, 'promise.'

Air flooded back into my lungs as he rolled off the top of me, stretching out on the ground next to me. My rib cage shook violently with each pound of my heart, each pant that escaped from my lips. I looked over to him, laying my eyes on him for the first time tonight. Even in the dark, dank place we were in he was still the same handsome Patch. But a thick stripe of bruises ran down the left side of his face, tarnishing his beauty. Guilt welled up inside me as I remembered how I'd been the one to leave those bruises.

His eyes caught mine as his gaze left the stars. He held it for a second before his eyes returned to the sky. I hadn't noticed before but under his stare I'd become aware of the fact that his fingers were coiled around my wrist which was laying on the ground between us. I'm sure it was just a way of guaranteeing my promise but all the same the tips of his fingers felt nice against my skin.

But within seconds of that realisation those same fingers were yanking me up from the ground. Patch was before me, his fingers tugging on my wrist, dragging me up.

"C'mon Angel, can't stay out here all night," he said tauntingly before giving me an extra hard yank that brought me to my feet so fast my head spun.

Patch started walking into the darkness, his fingers still connected with my wrist, pulling me along. I couldn't tell for sure if it was the direction of the house he was pulling me in but I knew that I had to give Rixon more time. I dug my heels into the dirt. My feeble attempt at stopping his steps didn't work though. Patch just gave an extra hard tug on my wrist, sending me flying forward a good few steps past him, my head grazing the side of a tree as I came to a stop. With all this tugging and being pushed and pulled around I felt like Patch's rag doll.

I turned around, my back now resting on the tree that had marred my face. Patch still stood in the same spot from where he had propelled me forward, rays of hostility shining out of his eyes at me.

"You either follow me now or I make you follow me," Patch growled, reminding me of which side I was dealing with. Patch didn't wait for an answer; he just strode across the space between us. He went to walk right by me, expecting me to follow in fear. But something came over me. I knew what I had to do all of a sudden, what would distract him.

I put my arm out just before he passed me. I felt his torso against my arm and he paused giving me an angry glare, a glare that had a slight confusion behind it. I knew what to do and as soon as I grabbed the back of his neck and reached up it all came surprisingly easy to me. My lips brushed his and I pulled back, hoping he'd take the bait.

Patch, true to form, was fast to act. There was a definite sense of urgency and rage as he wrenched my head back in line with his and forced his lips down onto mine. Whatever Dabria had done to him, the electric pull that existed between Patch and I remained unhurt. Even if he wasn't feeling love for me at this moment, lust was still there and it was distracting him from returning to Dabria, which was what I needed. He crushed his body to mine as his hand pushed against my lower back, trying to some how pull me closer even though I didn't think it was physically possible. We didn't break apart as Patch pushed me back into a tree, his lips now moving to the curve of my neck. His hand left the small of my back and he rested it on the tree next to my head.

I used my momentary lip freedom to utter, "not here…" My words came out breathy and I realised I was a lot more involved in the embrace than I originally thought I was. He pulled away and looked down into my eyes, unsure of what I was saying.

"The cabin," I breathed.

He looked slightly apprehensive at my words, an almost pained look appeared across his face. It was as if he thought I was luring him into a trap. And though I didn't want to admit it, there was a part of me that wanted to reassure him, to say that it was only a distraction and nothing was going to hurt him. But that part had forgotten who I was with. I was with the Patch that didn't love me, the Patch that just wanted me, the Patch that was driven by instinct.

I pushed myself up higher onto my toes so I was level and gave him a kiss that I knew he wouldn't refuse. I moved back down within a second, my feet once again flat on the floor. I looked up, waiting for an answer.

"Uh-huh," was all he got out before his lips returned to mine. I felt his arms curl around my back as he lifted me off the ground. Wrapping my dangling legs around his torso to give me balance, I continued with the charade that I secretly wished wasn't a game, but was a real moment between Patch and me. I felt myself being carried down the slope of the hill we were on, weight shifting from side to side with every step forward. I knew that that Rixon's house had been somewhere in the general direction of up, so going down was good. I don't know how Patch was managing to walk downhill on a crowded forest floor with me wrapped around him, but I knew that when sheer desire was driving Patch there was nothing he wasn't able to do.

A sort of calmness fell over me as we moved towards the cabin. A calmness that came from the fact that I was doing my one job, I was distracting Patch-quite successfully.

I felt a jolt as I realised we were at the cabin. Patch was slamming his back into the door in an attempt to open it without moving his hands from my back. Lucky for him the door hadn't been properly locked after our last visit. In fact I was surprised it was locked at all considering what had happened the last time I'd been here.

With one particularly strong thrust the door finally burst open and Patch almost brought us both to the floor as he struggled to find balance. When he straightened up though it seemed as if a fire had been ignited within him. Every kiss, every touch became more violent, as if time was running out. The intensity was beginning to frighten-

The cabin suddenly lit up as the lights were flicked on.

"Geez, Nora. Gullible much?" The voice sent a shiver down my spine and I felt all the warmth in my body evaporate. I wasn't the one who had been leading the other on, Patch had been leading me on. And he'd led me right to Dabria.

P.S I saw Eclipse yesterday (midnight screening of course) and I loved it, definitely more the second half of the movie than the first though. I was wondering what people think of it? As good as the 1st two?


	20. Chapter 20

Hey everyone! Happy school holidays to all the Aussies out there! New Chapter time! I know it's shorter than the last but it was either put up a short one or wait, and thought you'd prefer it now! To my fabulous reviewers: bookwormgrl101, FallenForTheDraco, twighlightangel61090, deator11, liv408, Sabira Wolf, Teehee Tummytums, xX-LalA-Xx (who was xXcrazyemoXx), nikochan23, love-30stm, Jelly Babes 101, Blood And Fangs27, XoxD-M-NL-V-RxoX, alexxxolax3, ronnie00, Winged Angel Girl, lonelygirl101, GirlGoneMad.x, Priceless-LegacyGirl, DamonSalvatore'sFutureWife x – loved hearing all your feedback sooo much (story wise & for Eclipse!), big thanks go out to you all! I mean BIG! Hope you like this, I'm starting work on the next chapter right now! Please review!

**CHAPTER 20**

"Dabria." I breathed. Ice pulsed through my veins as a million thoughts ran through my mind. Rixon. Patch's trap. Dabria. Death. Dabria's mind wasn't on any of those things though, in fact it was quite clear what was going through her head because her eyes zeroed in on mine and Patch's arms…arms that were still locked around each other. "Jealous, much?" I shot at her. That definitely got her attention.

A sort of shriek erupted from Dabria's throat before she lunged at me. Patch's arms were still iron around me, stopping me from moving from her path. I braced myself for the hit that I couldn't avoid, shutting my eyes as tight as I could in anticipation…

But there was no hit. It all happened very fast. A whoosh had sounded in my ears before the sound of a crash and thud filled them. I unscrunched my eyes and saw Dabria crumpled at the bottom of the wall behind Patch and I. But that wasn't the most confusing part of this. The most confusing part was the fact that Patch's arms were still fastened around me. He had swung me out of Dabria's path, the Patch that was filled with hate and disdain for me had taken the danger away.

I couldn't believe it, that I was standing and she was down. And more so than that I couldn't believe that she was still down. But from her appearance I didn't think she would be getting up soon. Her eyelids hung limply over her eyes and she looked thoroughly out of it. She really must have thrown her weight behind it. My eyes passed from her to Patch. He appeared to be just as confused as me by the whole thing. I breathed the first thought I was able to fully form, "what just happened?"

Patch's eyebrows were knotted together in frustration and confusion. His eyes were on the ground and I could see thoughts flashing by his eyes at a million miles an hour. "I don't know…" he whispered back, shaking his head. He looked to Dabria, folded up at the bottom of the pine wall, then me. His forehead scrunched up and he shook his head, flinging me into the wall beside us before dashing to Dabria's side.

The back of my head collided with the hard wood of the wall but it didn't hurt very much. Patch hadn't been interested in hurting me, just getting to Dabria. I felt that realisation cut through me, deep. Did Patch, at least this Patch, care for Dabria the way he cared for me? All this time I thought Patch had just been Dabria's lap dog but now, seeing him kneeling beside her, trying to coax her back into consciousness, I wasn't so sure.

But his success in bringing her back to lucidity was something I couldn't allow, I wouldn't allow because I knew that this moment was what Rixon would have called 'gold'. Dabria was down, Patch still looked thoroughly confused and I was free. My eyes skited back and forth across the room. Weapon, weapon, weapon. How could Patch not have anything sharp lying around? I'd been to his place in Coldwater, it was like a death trap with all the stuff lying around, and here, nothing?

But then I saw it. About two metres to behind me, hidden in the crook of the fireplace, a long line of black metal glinted dully in the darkness. Of course, fireplace, fire poker. I mentally reprimanded the idiocy that had cost me precious seconds as I moved slowly, steadily and hopefully stealthily towards it. I never took my eyes off Dabria and Patch's back.

As the fireplace appeared in my peripheral vision I reached out to the side behind me, my hand stretching towards where the poker was resting. My finger brushed the cold metal of the pole and my heart skipped a beat as I felt it slide from my reach. I felt the air around where it had been resting before I knocked it and my little finger brushed against something cold, hard and long.

It was as if the angels themselves were on my side, which of angels I couldn't say, but I thanked them silently as I wrapped my fingers around the poker which had only fallen back an inch into the corner of the fireplace, miraculously without a sound. I clasped the iron stick, my grip upon it so tight that I truly thought the indent it left in my hand would be permanent.

It was now or never. Carpe diem.

I tore my fist with the poker from the fireplace and hurled myself towards the far wall, brandishing the poker in my left hand. As I swung it down into the side of Dabria's blond head, Patch's hand reached out towards it but I was far to swift. It collided with her head, a clang ringing out, as if she were made of metal. Her upper body joined the rest of her, slamming down into the floor.

Shock and triumph overwhelmed me for a split second, allowing Patch to get a stern grip on the poker I was still holding. He jerked it forwards and back in the space of a heartbeat sending me flying back, minus the poker. It was now in Patch's hand, a hand that was now crossing the room, towards me.


	21. Chapter 21

Hey! So, may I begin with: don't hate me – I'm a procrastinator. I know I haven't posted, trust me I have felt the guilt. And I feel truly rotten about posting such a short chapter now but I just got a pm which gave me the kick in the butt I needed. Thankyou TomKaulitzLoverxxx, this chapter (I know it's super short but I only had 20 minutes) is dedicated to you and the most 'AWE – to the – SOME' reviewers ever: Jelly Babes 101, Blood And Fangs27, FallenForTheDraco, bookwormgrl101, Teehee Tummytums, fairylicker, nikochan23, twighlightangel61090, ronnie00, butterflyXD, DamonSalvatore'sFutureWife x, xhiddenvampirex, liv408, BlazingWolfFire, lonelygirl101, Sabira Wolf, katherine, GONEFAN101, Q3PinkyRules3Q, lionandlamb7, love-30stm, kajal12, sookielove123, Annie Wilde, XxGoodGirl12Xx, Shiba-san, EpicCentral557, Kiwigirl, katcullen, edwardrocks1901, edandbella, StinnaCullen109, jadey1793, XxJinxieUnluckyxX, ThisLittleDeath, ChLeReK4ever, may, tite-lilith, Shadowblood13, perfect-angel-13, ronanissexy, BadAssChick01 – give yourself a glee marathon or something because you need a break from being sooooo awesome! Hope you like-sies, please review!

**CHAPTER 21**

All I could focus on was that hand. The hand that had held me, felt me, caressed me and was now clasping a weapon ready to strike me. It moved towards me with such an effortless grace. With every smooth step a shivers ran up my spine. Closer, closer. It was coming for me.

But a metre away, it stopped. Patch stopped.

My eyes left his hand and shot upward to his face. His forehead was crumpled with lines of frustration and confusion. His lips were moving, barely. He was trying to say something and I wanted to hear it, I so wanted to hear it, but fear pinned me to the ground.

"I…can't…don't…" He was making no sense yet he kept trying to get it out, whatever it was. His forehead was tensed in concentration, and he kept jerking his head from side to side. After the end of a particularly violent jerk his eyes caught mine and a breath escaped his lips, "N-Nora…" he whispered before hitting the ground with a thud.

I didn't know what to do. I wanted to go over to see what was wrong with Patch. Maybe he was changing? I'd never asked him what happened when he changed and in that moment I wanted to kick myself for it.

Dabria was still down but she didn't look dead. I knew had to do something. By some stroke of luck the two divine creatures who had been trying to kill me were unconscious and I couldn't let the opportunity slip through my fingers.

Picking myself up off the ground, I moved as slowly and as silently as I could. My steps weren't of the grace that Patch's had been but they were the shaken up human could do. I knelt beside Patch when I got to where he was lying, still unconscious. His fingers fell open without a fight when I pulled the poker from his hand. He didn't stir which was a relief but at the same time a worry. I kept creeping across, pushing the anxiety over his stillness to the back of my mind.

Even though Dabria's eyelids were closed, I still thought she could see my every move. As I got closer to her paranoia rose within me. Slowing my pace, I put one foot out in front and pressed gently down on the floorboard, checking to see if it creaked. I was only a metre from her now. It didn't creak and I moved on, repeating for the final step.

She was in striking distance now. I had her. Yet there seemed to be a weight in my shoulders, stopping me from bringing the poker on her. How could I kill her? She was good once. There was a chance she could be good again, even if I was having a hard time believing it. She just looked so young lying there, blank. Usually she had a coldness about her. It had made her seem ageless, like a statue. But right now, all coldness was gone, all anger. She just looked peaceful, harmless. Was it right to kill her to keep me alive?

I didn't know if it was and I didn't want to decide but time was slipping. I needed a sign. Something to tell me whether I should strike or not. Yet just as had always happened, when I needed a sign there was none. I had to do it alone, no divine help for me. Though it made sense that god wouldn't give a sign to kill an angel.

I held the poker above my shoulders, slanted, as if it were a bat. I brought it down but stopped.

It couldn't happen that way. Not after all that had happened. It had to be certain, for sure. Making a move so swift I knew even Rixon would be impressed I thrust the spiked end of the poker into her chest.

**PREVIEW FOR CHAPTER 21: **

_Watching someone die in front of you is weird. I mean I didn't think it would be the most normal of experiences but it wasn't like I'd envisioned either, not that I had thought about it before._

Who's dying - I don't even know yet! New chapter is coming & I've changed the title of the story to "Duality"

Bye =)


	22. Chapter 22

Hey everyone! About a week after my last update I began my HSC year. I'm sure any Aussie-whatever state-will grasp the significance of that, but to everyone else it's the year of school in Australia that decides your future. Lots of tests & stuff which leaves not much time for fanfics unfortunately. I just began Christmas hols and was able to get this done but I can't solidly promise any future updates, I will attempt to post but it'll be erratic at best. To all of my absolutely fabulous reviewers: daisykisses, Sparrow's Lassie, StinnaCullen109, Sammie0014, xhiddenvampirex, nikochan23,ThisLittleDeath,007-license to kill, Cassidy, lonelygirl101, Psycho-Bunny1309, My-Name-Is-Not-Dobby, Epona's Chosen, Sabira Wolf, FallenForTheDraco, Jasmine-Dec31, perfect-angel-13, .x, twilightangel61090, silverwolfkitten, XxJinxieUnluckyxX, xonoraxo, may, , TaKeMeToPaRiSs153, hanna, BadAssChick01, Mimi, Winged Angel Girl, beachbooksboys, Solstice Night, shaterredrose13, Shiba-san, JodieSamantha, Smash41KMF, , littledhampir13, .., kimmi0490 – thank you all so much, your reviews always make my day & I hope this little mention improves yours =) Hope you enjoy the chapter. Please read & review…

**CHAPTER 22**

Watching someone die in front of you is weird. I mean I didn't think it would be the most normal of experiences but it wasn't like I'd envisioned either. Not that I had thought about it before. I felt guilty that I'd caused the scene before me, but more than that, I felt awkward. On about fifty different levels. I mean on one hand I knew what I'd done had to be done. There was no other way. But still, that nagging at the back of my mind persisted. You can still help. Call someone. Put pressure on the wound. It can be undone.

But I didn't do any of that. I felt so weird standing there, just ignoring it. Watching her die. I probably should have looked away. Respected her final moments. Helped Patch. But I couldn't. I had to see it through to her last breath. Because if there was one thing I'd learnt throughout this entire experience, it was that Dabria was as likely to spring back up as soon as I turned my back as she was to choke on her next breath. My eyes needed to stay on her.

She was fading fast. She wasn't able to talk, just mumble a string of syllables while blood gushed from her chest. I never realised how fake injuries on TV shows were until I saw that. Blood wasn't streaming evenly out through her chest, with every gulp of air she sucked in and pushed out a little fountain of blood would bubble up around the poker's perimeter. It was one particularly huge fountain gush, for lack of a better word, that made me pull the poker out. I thought it would help. I don't know if it did or didn't. Blood seemed to flow even more freely without it, yet there was no more "fountaining".

I felt my toes become damp and looked down to the floor. The crimson pool Dabria lay in had now reached my canvas bound feet. I edged back, my rubber-soled shoes squelching on the blood hardwood floor. The poker was still in my hand. A lead weight pulling my hand down, gravity trying to dip it in the blood it had spilled. It's weight, Dabria's choking sounds and the blood that dampened my feet were all I was aware of in that moment. All I could feel was the death I had caused.

The necessity behind it did nothing to numb those feelings and I don't think it ever would. But they were my burden to bear, no one else's, and I would not break down.

"Jesus Christ Nora-" A voice erupted behind me, hushed by my scream of surprise. It was only my scream and Rixon ignored it as he came forward into the cabin. I could see his shirt sleeve was torn and blood covered the edges of the frayed fabric.

"Are you okay?" I asked, nodding towards the tear that obviously hid a deep gash beneath it.

His eyes went from Dabria to his arm and he said nonchalantly, "oh yeah." He must have seen my confused reaction and quickly added. "trust me, it's the least of my worries." I didn't understand until he took a step further and saw that the two scars which all fallen angels had upon their back were bleeding. Not heavily at the moment, more like a slight trickle here and there. But the fact that the back of his outfit was a solid block of red told me that it had been a rough night for Rixon too.

"Do you need a hospital?" I said to his blood covered back as his face was facing Dabria.

"Nup, got it covered." He held his hand out to the side without turning around to face me. It was dirty, no doubt from the fight, but over the palm was a green-gold residue. I didn't know how that would help or even what it was but it was probably better that I left the angel healing to the angels.

Feeling certain Rixon would keep his eyes on Dabria as she continued to fade I stole a look towards Patch. He hadn't moved, his hand still open from when I'd taken the poker. His colour was slipping though. He wasn't dramatic white but he definitely didn't look normal.

"You should get him to the house…" Rixon spoke softly. He still stood before Dabria, looking as if he was in shock. I was about to tell him that I needed to stay, to see that Dabria was truly dead when he turned around and said in that voice no one could argue with, "go…"

His fingers reached down to my side and I followed them to see what he was doing. I watched as they curled around the bloodied poker. I hadn't even realised it was still there. He took it from my hand gently and I felt the weight of the death I caused lift a little. I opened and closed my hand twice, checking it was still able to move. It felt so numb, but as my fingertips brush against my palm twice I let go of a breath my shock and confusion had kept from escaping.

Patch twitched out of the corner of my eye, bringing my back to my instructions from Rixon. I reached his side and knelt down beside him. "Patch…Patch…Patch…"

He didn't answer. I wrapped my hands around his shoulders and shook them. Gently at first. Harder as I grew more worried. I thought he would wake up. I mean it was only as if he'd fainted, he should be waking up. I heard Dabria's mumbling grow louder in the background and my mind grew more frantic. Why wasn't he waking up? He had to wake up. Had to.

"Rixon he's not getting up! Why isn't he getting up?"

"Just get him outside, I'll be there in a sec."

"But he's-" I began.

"Just do it Nora! He is going to wake up! Just trust me!"

I looked back down at Patch wondering how I was meant to get him outside, ignoring the 'what ifs' in my head. Noticing his feet were closest to the door I lifted them up and began to drag him out. While I was sure this had to be the fastest way given our size difference it certainly wasn't as fast as I thought it would be. It would have looked comical if I'd been watching the scene and not actually having to be a part of it. Me dragging an unconscious angel to the door at snail speed, another angel standing statue still over a dying angel. Unfortunately I wasn't a spectator and the dragging process only grew more frustrating. When Patch woke up, and he would, he was getting a lecture on how annoying all that muscle was when I had to drag it through a door.

As I dragged his body through the front door I heard a croak break Dabria's constant mumbling. I looked up to see Rixon walking towards me. He no longer held the poker and Dabria was no longer mumbling.

"Let's go," Rixon said, kneeling down to sling Patch around his shoulders without any hesitation. I was relieved we weren't going to be dragging him up the hill but at the same time frustrated at how easy he made it look.

Rixon strode up the cluttered slope with confidence, never missing a step even under the weight of Patch. I stumbled over a few stones here and there but got up as soon as I was down, knowing that the faster we were up the hill the sooner Patch would be awake. The sky grew lighter as we walked, as if was helping us. I wondered whether it was the angels, whether they knew how close we were to fixing everything. Thinking back on everything though-the lack of co-operation, them wanting to take Patch away, the 72 hour deadline of which we had only lost 24 hours-something told me it wasn't them lighting the sky so early for us.

Keeping pace with Rixon was hard but as soon as I saw the now broken door of the house I was glad he hadn't slowed for me. I wanted to asked Rixon why the door was broken but a much more pressing question reached my lips as we came closer to the door, the dawn light revealing a ring of white hair streaming down the shoulders of of 6"1 frame…

"Why is Carnelian here?"

_P.S I haven't had time to read Crescendo yet so I'm sorry for any deviations from the angel mythology in Crescendo if there are any…_

_Merry Christmas =)_


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